Tags: Disease.
Xeroderma pigmentosum or XP is an autosomal recessive genetic disorder of DNA repair in which the ability to repair damage caused by ultraviolet (UV) light is deficient. In extreme cases all exposure to sunlight must be forbidden no matter how small; as such individuals with the disease are often colloquially referred to as Children of the Night. Multiple basal cell carcinomas (basaliomas) and other skin malignancies frequently occur at a young age in those with XP.
