UV nail dryers used for gel manicures may pose skin cancer risk

A recent study out of the University of California San Diego concluded that radiation from ultra violet (UV) nail polish dryers damages DNA and may pose a risk for skin cancer. The safety of gel or shellac manicures, which require hands to be placed under a UV light to ‘cure’ the polish, has been subject to debate in recent years. The treatment is often done at a salon, but many consumers also have dryers at home. Meta-analyses have shown a causal relationship between skin cancer and irradiation with UV-emitting tanning devices, leading researchers in San Diego to set out to test the UV-emitting nail devices. DNA damage and somatic mutations Published in January in Nature Communications, the study concluded that radiation emitted by UV nail polish lamps can both damage DNA and permanently engrave mutations on the cells studied: the genomes of primary mouse embryonic fibroblasts, human foreskin fibroblasts and human epidermal keratinocytes. The researchers found that a single 20-minute session led to cell death in 20% to 30% of the cells. Three or more consecutive 20-minute session exposures killed 65% to 70% of the exposed cells. The remaining cells experienced DNA and mitochondrial damage, resulting in patterns indicative of skin cancer in humans. The study’s genomic profiling revealed higher levels of somatic mutations in the irradiated cells and mutation patterns associated with melanoma. Because the study was not conducted on living participants, the study authors noted there was not enough data to conclusively quantify an increased risk of cancer. However, the authors pointed out that recently a small number of melanoma and non-melanoma cases, reported either on the nail or on the back of the hand, have also been putatively attributed to exposure to UV radiation emitted by nail polish dryers. “Taken together, our experimental results and the prior evidence strongly suggest that radiation emitted by UV-nail polish dryers may cause cancers of the hand and that UV-nail polish dryers, similar to tanning beds, may increase the risk of early-onset skin cancer,” the authors concluded. "Future large-scale epidemiological studies are warranted to accurately quantify the risk for skin cancer of the hand in people regularly using UV nail polish dryers," the authors wrote. "It is likely that such studies will take at least a decade to complete and to subsequently inform the general public." In an interview with NPR, lead author Maria Zhivagui said she was alarmed by the results and noted that nail salons typically have UV devices that are more potent than the one used in the study. The results led her to personally stop getting gel manicures. "When I saw these results, I decided to put a hold on it and just mitigate as much as possible my exposure to these risk factors," Dr. Zhivagui said. Commenting on the study, Toronto dermatologist Dr. Julia Carroll told the Star, “I’ve always been concerned about the frequent use of UVA lamps in polish dryers. We’ve known about the effects of UVA on skin leading to sun damage, aging and skin cancer, but this study goes further showing that these specific lamps lead to DNA damage, which can cause skin aging, sun damage and potentially skin cancer.”

UV nail dryers used for gel manicures may pose skin cancer risk

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