Key Takeaways<\/p>\n
Tattoos might protect against melanoma<\/p>\n
People with more tattoos were less likely to develop melanoma<\/p>\n
They might take better care of their skin, or the tats might provide some sort of screen from UV rays, researchers say<\/p>\n
MONDAY, Sept. 22, 2025 (HealthDay News) \u2014 Getting that tattooed arm sleeve or back design of your dreams might protect you against deadly skin cancer, a new study says.<\/p>\n
People who\u2019ve had two or more sessions under the tattoo needle show a lower risk of melanoma<\/a>, according to a recent study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute<\/a>.<\/p>\n Further, the risk decreased with the number of tattoos a person has, results show.<\/p>\n People who underwent four or more tattoo sessions had a 56% lower risk for melanoma, compared to those who\u2019ve never been inked, researchers found.<\/p>\n Likewise, people with three or more large tattoos had a 74% lower melanoma risk, the study says.<\/p>\n \u201cThe results that tattoos could decrease melanoma risk surprised us, but this isn\u2019t a black and white case of \u2018get more tattoos, and you could lower your risk of melanoma,\u2019\u201d lead researcher Rachel McCarty<\/a>, a post-doctoral scientist at the International Agency for Research on Cancer, said in a news release.<\/p>\n \u201cInstead, we need to do more research to understand what we are seeing and if this decreased risk is simply due to behavioral or physical factors, or if there could be beneficial immune responses associated with tattooing which lower melanoma risk,\u201d McCarty said.<\/p>\n For example, it might be that people who get tattoos regularly are more cautious with sun safety and take better care of their skin, researchers said.<\/p>\n It might also be that the tattoo ink forms a physical barrier that blocks UV radiation, or that they promote an immune response in the skin that targets precancerous cells, they speculated.<\/p>\n For the study, researchers compared 1,167 melanoma cases that occurred in Utah between Jan. 2020 and June 2021, and compared them against more than 5,800 healthy individuals.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Mountain West and the area we serve have some of the highest melanoma rates in the country,\u201d researcher Dr. Douglas Grossman<\/a>, co-leader of the Melanoma Center at at the University of Utah\u2019s Huntsman Cancer Institute, said in a news release.<\/p>\n \u201cBetter understanding risk factors for melanoma will help us improve prevention strategies across the region, advise our patients about risks more accurately, and ultimately save lives,\u201d Grossman said.<\/p>\n About 12% of people with melanoma in the study had tattoos, compared to 15% among the control group, researchers said.<\/p>\n Getting just one tattoo was associated with a 53% increased risk of melanoma compared with never getting a tattoo, results show.<\/p>\n But more tattoos were tied to a lower melanoma risk, researchers found.<\/p>\n