Skin cancer

Cancer is any malignant growth or tumor caused by abnormal and uncontrolled cell division and it may spread to other parts of the body through the lymphatic system or the blood stream. Skin cancer, a malignant neoplasm of the skin, is one of the several types of cancers and is the commonest disease found globally. Generally it is considered that overexposure to sun is the major reason for unusual multiplication of skin cells thus causing skin cancer but it is not necessary that other unexposed parts of the body would not be attacked by the disease.

Skin cancer can be divided into different types depending upon its occurrence in the particular areas of the body. Melanoma is one such type that occurs when skin cancer attacks melanocytes, which are cells in the basal layer of the epidermis that produce melanin pigment. Another type of skin cancer is carcinoma which is a malignant tumor derived from epithelial tissue. Carcinoma can be further subdivided into two major categories – basal cell, existing in the innermost part of the skin’s outermost layer and squamous cell, an epithelial cell that is flat like a plate and form a single layer of epithelial tissue. If diagnosed in its initial stage, carcinoma can be treated successfully but melanoma disseminates rapidly in other parts of the body and is the severest kind of skin cancer.

Symptoms

If an individual finds spots, blemishes, scars or bumps on the skin not healing in spite of adopting effective treatment methods, then they are certainly early signs of skin cancer. These changes in the skin slightly begin to advance in other parts of the body if not been diagnosed at right time thus aggravating the condition of the disease. Even if the existing moles or warts suddenly become larger and start changing color, one must immediately rush to the doctor for diagnosis.

Diagnosis

The doctor will first figure out the symptoms that are actually the basis of skin cancer. And for detailed examination, biopsy can also be done so that the doctor may confirm that the abnormal cell division in your body is due to skin cancer.

Treatment

Usually, surgery is considered as an effective treatment method to remove skin cancer. However, if the disease has not spread and diagnosed quickly, then it can be treated easily by simply removing the cancerous part of the skin. In this technique, the patient is given local anesthesia and after treatment, a very small scar remains that hardly visible. Another effective method to treat skin cancer is to scratch up the affected areas with the help of curette using electric current. In this case, a whitish scar remains after the treatment. In certain cases, cryosurgery is applied in which extremely cold liquid nitrogen is used to destroy unwanted tissue of skin cancers. However, this treatment needs repetition for complete removal of the cancerous cells. The patient may find a white mark on the affected portion after the treatment.

If the skin cancer has not penetrated into the deeper layers of the skin or if there are symptoms of this disease on lips, then the doctor would adopt laser technique through which cancerous cell could be taken out in the form of vapors. No scar or mark appears after this method.

If the skin cancer reaches in advanced stage, Mohs surgery could be used to slough off the cancerous cells from each layer of the skin. However, this is a time consuming treatment and need expertise, hence the patient must go specialist surgeon. The early stage of carcinoma can also be treated through radiation and chemotherapy, a method in which chemical agents are used topically to treat the affected areas.

Prevention

Your skin should be protected from sunrays, hence use sunscreen with not less than SPF 15. Apart from that, you must also wear good quality of sunglass to protect your eyes from sun.

It is advisable to wear cap and protective clothes if you remain for longer time in sun.

You must be aware of even the minute change in your skin and consult the doctor in case any symptom matches with that of skin cancer.