Causes And Types of Skin Cancer

One common treatment done by montclair dermatology centers addresses the treatment of skin cancers. Skin cancer generally develops in the epidermis which is the outermost layer of skin, so a tumor is usually clearly visible. This makes most skin cancers detectable in the early stages. Unlike other cancers, including those originating in the lung, pancreas, and stomach, only a small minority of those afflicted will actually die of the disease. However, it does represent the most commonly diagnosed cancer, surpassing lung, breast, colorectal and prostate cancer.

Risks of Having Skin Cancers

According to montclair dermatology centers, skin cancer is most closely associated with chronic inflammation of the skin. This includes:

*Overexposure to UV-radiation can cause skin cancer either via the direct DNA damage or via the indirect DNA damage mechanism. UVA & UVB have both been implicated in causing DNA damage resulting to cancer.

*Chronic non-healing wounds, especially burns. These are called Marjolin's ulcers based on their appearance, and can develop into squamous cell carcinoma.

*Genetic predisposition, including "Congenital Melanocytic Nevi Syndrome". CMNS is characterized by the presence of "nevi" or moles of varying size that either appears at or within 6 months of birth. Nevi larger than 20 mm (3/4") in size are at higher risk for becoming cancerous.

*Human papilloma virus (HPV) is often associated with squamous cell carcinoma of the genital, anal, oral, pharynx, and fingers. It is believed that the HPV vaccine might help to prevent these cancers as well as cervical cancers.

*Skin cancer is one of the potential dangers of ultraviolet germicidal irradiation, a sterilization method that uses ultraviolet (UV) light at sufficiently short wavelength to break down micro-organisms.

Types of Skin Cancer

It has been cited by several centers including montclair dermatology centers that there are currently three common types of skin cancers, each of which is named after the type of skin cell from which it arises. The most common skin cancers are basal cell cancer, squamous cell cancer, and melanoma.

*Basal cell carcinomas (BCC) are the most common cancers. They are present on sun-exposed areas of the skin, especially the face. They rarely metastasize, and rarely cause death. They are easily treated with surgery or radiation.

*Squamous cell carcinomas (SCC) are common, but much less common than basal cell cancers. They metastasize more frequently than BCCs. Even then, the metastasis rate is quite low, with the exception of SCCs of the lip, ear, and in immunosuppressed patients.

*Melanomas are the least frequent of the 3 common skin cancers. They frequently metastasize, and are deadly once the cancer has spread.