Skin cancer

Skin cancer is an abnormal growth of skin cells, usually occurring in sun-exposed skin areas, but this type of cancer can occur in areas where the skin is not exposed to sunlight.

You can reduce your risk of cancer by reducing or avoiding UV exposure. Skin screening can help to detect abnormal changes in the detection of skin cancer in its early stages. Early detection of skin cancer gives you a great chance of getting successful treatment against skin cancer.

Symptoms of skin cancer

Where skin cancer occurs

Skin cancer occurs primarily in places exposed to the sun, including the scalp, face, lips, ears, neck, chest, arms, hands, and legs of women, but skin cancer may occur in places rarely exposed to light during the day such as Hands, under fingernails or fingers, and in sensitive areas.

Skin cancer affects all types of skin by varying degrees of color. This includes people with dark skin. When dark skin is affected by melanoma, it occurs in areas that are not exposed to sunlight, such as the palms of the hand and the soles of the feet.

Symptoms of basal cell carcinoma

Skin cancer usually occurs in skin areas exposed to sunlight such as the neck and face. Basal cell carcinoma may appear in the form of:

Browning in pearl or wax color.

Scar is a flat skin color and resembles skin problems.

Squamous cell carcinoma

Squamous cell carcinoma often occurs in sun-exposed areas within the body such as the face, ears, and hands. Dark-skinned people will be more likely to develop squamous cell carcinoma in areas that are not exposed to the sun often, and squamous cell carcinoma may appear as:

Solid red bump.

Flat lesion with a diaphragm surface has a crust.

Symptoms of melanoma

Melanoma can occur anywhere in the body, in the natural places of the skin, or in one of the moles that are turned into a cancerous mole. Melanoma usually occurs on the face or trunk of the affected men. For women, melanoma usually occurs in the lower part of the man. Melanoma can occur in men and women in places where it is not exposed to sunlight.

Melanoma can affect all types of skin by varying degrees of color, but melanoma usually occurs in the palm of the hand, the soles of the feet, or under the fingernails or toes. Symptoms of melanoma may include:

Huge brown spot with dark dots.

A mole changes in color or size or bleeds.

Skin lesions with irregular edges, or red, white, blue, or black parts.

Dark skin lesions in the palm of the hand, soles of the feet, or fingertips, or mucous membrane lining the mouth, nose, vagina or buttocks.

Symptoms of the least common types of skin cancer

Symptoms that may occur when you have less common types of skin cancer include:

Cancer of Cabozzi

Kapuzi (Sarcoma Kapuzi) is a rare skin cancer that can occur within the blood vessels of the skin, causing red or purple spots on the skin or mucosa.

Sarmoma Kapuzi occurs mainly in people with weakened immune systems, such as people with AIDS or people taking immunosuppressive drugs such as those who have undergone organ transplants.

Merkel cell cancer

Merkel's cancer causes the appearance of solid, shiny protrusions, which may appear on or under the skin or inside hair follicles. This type usually appears in the head, neck, and trunk.

Fatty gland cancer

It is one of the most common and severe cancers that appear in the sebaceous glands of the skin, and the glandular gland cancer usually appears in a solid, painless, and can occur anywhere in the body, but often occurs in the eyelids, where it is confused with Other eyelid problems.

When should I see a doctor?

Make an appointment with your doctor if you notice any changes to the surface of your skin that may make you anxious. All skin changes do not cause skin cancer, and the doctor will examine skin changes to determine why these changes occur.

Causes of Skin Cancer

Skin cancer occurs as a result of a defect in the DNA of the skin cells, causing this imbalance in the growth of cells is difficult to control, and also causes the formation of cancer clusters.

Cells that cause skin cancer

Skin cancer begins to appear in the upper layer of the skin, the dermis. The dermis is a thin layer that provides protection for skin cells, a layer that the body gets rid of continuously. The dermis contains three main types of cells:

Squamous cells, cells that fall under the outer surface, act as an inner layer of the skin.

Basal cells, which produce new skin cells, are located under squamous cells.

Melanocytes, the cells that produce melanin, the pigment responsible for skin color, are located in the lower part of the dermis. These cells secrete more melanin when they are present in the sun to protect the deeper layers of the skin.

The type and treatment of skin cancer depends on where the cancer cells begin.

UV rays and some other causes

Most cases of DNA damage occur in the skin cells due to UV exposure, which is present in the sun, and the organs that cause tanning of the body, but exposure to sunlight does not explain skin cancer, which occurs in areas that are not exposed to the sun, Other causes may increase the risk of skin cancer, such as exposure to toxic substances or a disease that may cause a weakened immune system.

Risk factors for skin cancer

Factors that may increase the risk of skin cancer:

Light skin

Anyone with skin color can have skin cancer, but having fewer melanin in the skin means that the person has less UV protection, and if the person has blond or red hair, light colored eyes, or Suffering from sunburn or freckles, this means that this person is more susceptible to skin cancer than the owners of dark skin.

Exposure to sunburn

Exposure to sunburn for a number of times during childhood or adolescence increases the risk of skin cancer after becoming an adult. Sunburn, which occurs during puberty, can increase the risk of skin cancer.

Living in sunny places

People living in sunny or high-temperature areas are more likely to develop skin cancer than people living in cold areas, and people living in higher altitudes are exposed to greater amounts of sunlight.

Moles

People who have too many moles or have abnormal moles are more likely to develop skin cancer. The abnormal moles, which are irregular in shape, larger in size than normal moles, can become cancerous cells. If you have a history of infection For abnormal moles, watch them carefully and watch for changes that may occur.

Cervical skin lesions

The presence of some skin lesions, called dandruff, can increase the risk of skin cancer. These carcinogenic cells appear in the form of scaly patches, which range in color from brown to dark pink. These lesions are widely spread in the face, head, And the hands of light-skinned people who have been damaged by exposure to sunlight.

Family record of injury

If a family member as a parent or relative has skin cancer, this means an increased risk of the disease.

Personal history of injury

If you have had skin cancer before, you will be at risk of getting it again.

The weak immune system

People with weakened immune systems are more likely to be exposed to skin cancer, including people living with HIV / AIDS and people who take immunosuppressive drugs after the transfer of organs.

Exposure to radiation

People who have received radiation therapy for certain skin diseases such as eczema and young people may be more likely to develop skin cancer, especially basal cell carcinoma.

Exposure to some substances

Exposure to certain substances such as arsenic may increase your risk of skin cancer.

Prevention of skin cancer

You can reduce the risk of melanoma and other skin cancers by:

Sun rays are severe between 10 am and 4 pm, so activities that require staying outside at another time of the day must be done, and this applies to winter and cloudy times.

Since the body absorbs ultraviolet rays throughout the year, clouds may provide some protection from these harmful rays. Avoid severe sunburn, help avoid exposure to sunburn, which cause skin damage and increase the risk of skin cancer and over time may develop skin cancer.

Apply sunscreen throughout the year

The sunscreen does not provide full protection of the skin from ultraviolet rays, so wear dark clothing covering your arms, legs, and do not forget to wear the hat. Do not forget to wear sunglasses, especially glasses that block all harmful rays.

Avoid tanning devices

You should avoid devices that give the skin a dark color, because these devices release ultraviolet rays, which increase the risk of skin cancer.

Beware of medicines that increase sensitivity to sunlight

Some prescription drugs and over-the-counter medicines, including antibiotics, may increase the skin's sensitivity to sunlight. Ask your doctor or pharmacist about the side effects of the drugs you are taking. If these medications increase your sensitivity to light, take further action to stay away from the sun to protect the skin.

Check your skin regularly and tell your doctor about the changes

Check your skin periodically for any changes that may occur, such as skin growth, change in moles on the skin surface, appearance of freckles, pills, and birthmarks.

Using your mirrors, examine your face, neck, ear, and scalp, and examine your chest, trunk, arm, hand, forefoot and foot and foot. This includes examining the soles of the foot and the distances between the fingers. Check sensitive areas as well.

Diagnosis of skin cancer

In order to diagnose skin cancer, the doctor will:

 Skin examination

Your doctor may look at the skin to see if skin changes are caused by skin cancer, and further tests may confirm the diagnosis.

Skin biopsy

The doctor may remove the suspected skin cancer section to be examined. A skin biopsy can determine if you have skin cancer or not, and if so, will identify the type of skin cancer you are experiencing.

Determine the incidence of skin cancer

If your doctor is diagnosed with skin cancer, you may need further tests to determine the stage of skin cancer. Because superficial skin cancer such as basal cell cancer rarely spreads, the biopsy used to remove cancer is the only procedure to be performed. If you have squamous cell carcinoma, Merkel's cancer, or melanoma, the doctor may ask for more tests to determine the extent of the cancer.

Additional screening tests, which will examine the nearby lymph nodes for signs of cancer, may remove one of the lymph nodes and examine them for any signs of cancer.

Doctors use Roman numerals to determine the cancer stage, and the smaller the number, the smaller the tumor is confined to the area from which the cancer originated. The fourth stage refers to the spread of cancer to other parts of the body. Identifying the cancer phase helps determine the best treatment method.

Treatment of skin cancer

Treatment options used to treat skin cancer and carcinogenic cells depend on the size, type, depth and location of the lesion. Small skin cancers confined to the surface of the skin will not need treatment after skin biopsy, which will completely eliminate cancer growth. If further treatment is needed, the following may be used:

Freezing

The doctor may destroy carcinogenic cells, or early cancer cells by freezing them with nitrogen liquid, and kill the dead tissue when the freeze melts.

Surgery to remove cancer

This procedure is used to treat any type of skin cancer. The doctor removes the cancerous cells and some of the surrounding healthy cells. It is better to remove an extra part of the normal cells surrounding the tumor in some cases.

Moose surgery

This procedure is used in large cancer cases, which are difficult to treat, which may include both basal cells and squamous cells, and is usually used in some places and it is necessary to save as much of the skin as possible from the nose.

During Moose surgery, the doctor will remove the skin layer by layer, each layer will be examined under the microscope, so that no abnormal cells remain, and this procedure removes the cancer cells without removing more healthy cells.

Cryotherapy

After removal of most of the tumor, the doctor removes layers of cancer cells using a machine with a circular blade, and will use the electric needle to destroy any of the remaining surface cells, and in this process can be used nitrogen liquid to freeze the base and limbs of the area to be treated, And rapid treatment of basal cell carcinoma or thin squamous cell carcinoma.

Radiation therapy

Radiation therapy is a treatment method that uses high-energy beams such as x-rays to kill cancer cells. Radiotherapy can be performed when the surgery does not completely remove the cancer.

Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy uses some drugs to destroy cancer cells. For skin cancer confined to the upper layer of the skin, creams containing anti-cancer agents will be placed directly above the surface of the skin and systemic chemotherapy is used to treat skin cancer that has spread to other parts of the body.

Dynamic photodynamic therapy

Dynamic phototherapy destroys cancer cells using a mixture of lasers and drugs, which make cancer cells sensitive to light.

Biological therapy

Biological therapy stimulates the immune system to help the body resist cancer and kill cancer cells.

Prepare for a doctor appointment

Usually, you will go to a dermatologist or go to a specialist in cancer treatment, and because there is much to talk about, you must prepare for your appointment with the doctor, and this is some information that may help during your meeting with the doctor.

What you can do

Ask your doctor if there are any restrictions that must be met before your appointment.

Write down your symptoms even those symptoms that may not be related to your visit to the doctor.

Write down a list of some personal information, including exposure to some stress or changes in your life.

Write a list of the medications you are taking, even if they are a combination of supplements or vitamins.

Bring a family member with you to help you remember the information your doctor will tell you.

Write down the questions you will need to ask your doctor about.

Because your time with your doctor is limited, setting up a list of questions can help you make the most of your appointment, list your questions, and start with the most important questions you need to know.

Questions you will ask the doctor

Do I have skin cancer?

What type of skin cancer is infected?

What tests will I need to do?

How fast is the spread and growth of skin cancer? What treatment options are available to me?

Are there alternatives to the proposed treatment? What are the side effects of each treatment?

Will the surgery leave a scar? Do I need to see a specialist?

Am I at risk for other types of skin cancer?

Do I reduce my risk of getting other types of skin cancer?

Are there any printed papers that I can take home?

Is there a medical site that advises me to visit?

Will I need additional tests to detect other types of skin cancer?

On what basis will you schedule periodic visits with you?

In addition to the above questions, if you feel that you need to ask the doctor more questions do not hesitate to ask them during your appointment with him.

What to expect from a doctor

The doctor will ask you a range of questions including:

When did you first notice skin changes?

Have you noticed a problem with the skin increased or changed over time?

Do you suffer from skin problems that cause itching or bleeding?

How severe are the symptoms you feel?

After you know everything you want about skin cancer. If you want a query you can consult us