SummaryProject objective: The Tattoo inK project plans a detailed survey of tattoo exposure at the population level in order to be able to estimate potential tattoo-related health risks, in particular lymph node and skin cancer risk, using large population cohorts. Scientific background: More and more people in Germany are tattooed, according to surveys 10-36%. Despite the high prevalence in the population, health consequences of tattoos are hardly researched and tattoos are generally considered to be harmless to health. Few people are aware that most of the solid tattoo ink components migrate from the skin into the body, initially the lymph nodes, and that tattoo inks can contain toxic substances. Depending on the colour and origin of the tattoo inks, these include metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and primary aromatic amines (PAAs). These substances can be carcinogenic through oral or respiratory exposure. Possible consequences of subcutaneous exposure, as with tattoos, are largely unexplored. Methods: Collection of longitudinal epidemiological data in the nationwide NAKO health study (size of study population: > 200 000) by means of an additional standardised questionnaire on tattoo exposure sent to all NAKO participants who reported being tattooed in the NAKO surveys, regardless of age and sex. Detailed knowledge about exposure is necessary because a potential health risk depends on many factors of a tattoo, e.g. colour, size and age of the tattoo). In parallel to the project described below, the same information is being collected in the French national cohort "Constances", coordinated by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). Funding for this partner project is provided by the French Cancer Institute (INCa). Thus - if this project is funded - in addition to the planned national analyses, the data collected in the German and French studies could be jointly analysed and compared in a further step in order to validate the results and maximise the statistical power.

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InstitutionsDKFZ, Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, International Agency For Research On Cancer, International Agency for Research on Cancer