Ultraviolet radiation exposure, vitamin D, and cancer.

This paper reviews briefly the evidence for an association between various measures of UV radiation (UVR) exposure and the development of cancer. Issues such as data quality, study design, measurement variation, comparability of studies, and quantification of UV exposure in relation to skin cancer are discussed. A range of exposure, based on skin type, might be appropriate: from 5 min a day three times a week for light-skinned individuals and 10 min a day three times a week for darker-skinned individuals. These exposures translate into 13 h per year, for a light-skinned individual, leading to 650 h of exposure from birth to age 50.