Search:

Understanding Cancers of the Skin

By: John Grimme Not all cancers are the same. Some are deadly from diagnosis, but others are not. Skin cancer is preventable and treatable, but many people fail to take the steps to avoid it.

When sitting in a doctor’s office, one always tends to get the feeling any news will be bad news. Imagine sitting there and having your doctor tell you that you have cancer.

Can you imagine sitting there after being told you have cancer. All those problems in your life might seem a bit trivial. In fact, you might feel a bit idiotic considering you could have prevented skin cancer.

A diagnosis of cancer carries a certain lotto factor. Getting cancer is bad enough, but the type of cancer is critical to your ultimate outcome. Fortunately, skin cancer is both treatable and preventable.

The layers of your skin, with the epidermis being typical, are where you will find skin cancer. In nominal terms, the cancer is an atypical growth in the cells of the particular layer.

As you can probably guess, skin cancer is caused by sun exposure. The exposure can be for short periods that result in burns, but they can also be for exposure over long periods of time. Having a good tan has not been shown to make a difference.

Cancerous skin growth is actually a catch all phrase. This particular cancer breaks down into three different types with each having its own outcome.

When it comes to this type of cancer, there is serious and less serious diagnosis. Malignant melanoma is the worst. It is fatal if not treated early, but is the rarest form diagnosed.

Basal carcinoma is by far the most common form of skin cancer people are diagnosed with. Happily, it is treatable. Only a very small percentage of cases result in fatality.

Our final sub-category of skin cancer is Squamous cell. It falls somewhere between the previous two. It is diagnosed less than basal, but more than melanoma. It can even have a hereditary element. If treated early, it is curable. If not, it can be fatal.

Getting cancer is a horrific thing, particular since there is often little you can do to prevent it. Skin cancer is a different story. If you take basic steps, you can prevent it.

Picture a warm, sunny day. What are people doing? They are lying out in the sun. They are going on walks. They are doing some landscaping. All of these things put them at risk for skin cancer.

The magic cure for skin cancer is sun protection. If you are going to be out in the sun, wear it! That’s it. How hard is that? If you have less hair than you might wish, you should also wear a hat. Take these common sense, easy steps, and you can prevent problems.