subject: Skin Cancer - The Different Types by:Bill Johnson [print this page] When I went shopping the other day at the local store, I was taken in by the hair coloring of the clerk. It was beautiful , with a dark base and a natural -looking streaks, just as if the sun touched only her alone. I told her this and we promptly struck a conversation which largely centers on our younger days when we rarely use hair dyes.
All we do then was spray SunIn on our hair and stay out in the sun for an hour or at most two. The dialogue inevitably shifted to how that practice is practically impossible now, thanks to the depletion of the ozone layer to such an extent that there is virtually no screen between the earth and the harsh and sometimes fatal rays of the sun.
I know am boring you stiff with unnecessary tales, as this should be a platform for information about skin cancer. But the little narration does hold some evidence against chemicals in health and beauty products, and it certainly describes the lethal effect of the sun rays as a potential cause of our subject. But since none of us are trained medical practioners, experts or specialists, our information on the forms of skin cancer will be restricted to the bare essentials.
Basically, only three forms of skin cancer are known : Basal Cell Carcinoma, which is also known as non-melanoma skin cancer, Squamous Cell Carcinoma, and Melanoma.
Cancerous cells known as melanoma grow in the melanocytes, which are the cells that are responsible for skin pigmentation. The University of Maryland and other reputable experts rates melanoma as the rarest and the most virulent of all forms of skin cancer. People with fair skin, light hair, and light eyes have an appreciable amount of these cells, though it can be present in people with other complexions too.
Indeed experts asserted that folks with dark brown and black skin are not exempted. The clear symptoms to look out for include a mole changing color, its size, shape or state-- if it starts bleeding, or moles that are either itchy, hard, lumpy, swollen or tender when touched.
The onset of Squamous cell carcinoma commonly starts as a scaly patch of skin that appears to be red. they can also be in form of nodules. Amongst the three forms of skin cancer, Squamous, which affects Caucasians is the second most popular and appears either on the ear rims, face, lips or mouths.
Basal Cell Carcinoma is another form of skin cancer and usually begins as a small fleshy nodule, and it frequently appear on the head, neck, or hands. Basal cell carcinoma which also typically affects Caucasians, is the most virulent form in the U.S amongst the three forms of skin cancer. It is estimated that it accounts for 90% of the victims.
My mother had the bad fortune of having the second of the most common form of skin cancer right on her lip. Initially she was teased that it was herpes. But she figured out quickly that it was what is known as a sun blister, and she was even faster in consulting with a specialist. That surely is cheerful news, which will give you hope as you wail the days lost picnicking, swimming, and bathing under the sun.
