Abstract: A recent letter in your journal cites sun exposure as an important modifiable risk factor to reduce the incidence of skin cancer. While military veterans represent a significant percentage of the United States population, research related to sun protection and skin cancer among this group is limited. Given this, we aimed to assess skin cancer risk behaviors and prevention in this underserved population. We performed a retrospective analysis on sun-protective behaviors from the Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS) 5 cycle 1 and HINT 4 cycle 3 from the years 2013 and 2017 (only years in database that include skin cancer prevention behaviors variables). Data included demographic information, skin cancer prevention, skin cancer risk factors, and personal history of skin cancer (Table 1). Multivariate odds ratios, adjusted for demographic and socioeconomic factors, were calculated using IBM-SPSS Version 28.0. These analyses were performed on weighted samples to account for selection variability from survey design. A P < 0.05 was statistically significant.
While most individuals achieve the transition to civilian life smoothly, some face significant challenges. Although numerous support services are available to those who need them, …