Researchers can't explain the gender split, but they suspect that girls' increased exposure to ultraviolet rays from the sun and from tanning beds could be partly to blame.
Tanning beds may be cause of melanoma increase
Researchers from the National Cancer Institute analyzed trends in melanoma for men and women aged 15 to 59.
In the 1970s, the cancer was on the rise among both sexes.
In the 1980s, cases leveled off for men but continued to rise for women.
Overall, melanoma incidence more than doubled for young women since then.
