INCREASED RISK OF SKIN-CANCER - ANOTHER CELTIC MYTH - A REVIEW OF CELTIC ANCESTRY AND OTHER RISK-FACTORS FOR MALIGNANT-MELANOMA AND NONMELANOMA SKIN-CANCER

It is often stated that persons of Celtic origin have an increased ris k of skin cancer, but the evidence for this is almost exclusively anec dotal. We believe that the possibility of the Celts being at greater r isk of skin cancer has important implications with regard to managemen t in particular and in assisting our understanding of carcinogenesis i n general. For these reasons we have reviewed all those studies implic ating Celtic ancestry in the development of both malignant melanoma an d nonmelanoma skin cancer.