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Skin Cancer

Skin cancer is the uncontrolled growth of abnormal skin cells. If left unchecked, these cancer cells can spread from the skin into other tissues and organs.

There are different types of skin cancer. Basal cell carcinoma is the most common. Melanoma is less common, but more dangerous.

Symptoms

Skin cancers may have many different appearances. They can be small, shiny, waxy, scaly and rough, firm and red, crusty or bleeding, or have other features. Therefore, anything suspicious should be looked at by a physician. See the articles on specific skin cancers for more information.

Here are some features to look for:

* Asymmetry: one half of the abnormal skin area is different than the other half
* Borders: irregular borders
* Color: varies from one area to another with shades of tan, brown, or black (sometimes white, red, blue)
* Diameter: usually (but not always) larger than 6 mm in size (diameter of a pencil eraser)
* Any skin growth that bleeds or will not heal

Use a mirror or have someone help you look on your back, shoulders, and other hard-to-see areas.

Treatment

Different types of skin cancer require different treatment approaches. Surgical removal of the cancer is very common.

See the specific types of skin cancer (linked at the right under "Related Topics") to learn more about treatments for the different types of skin cancer.

Why you shouldn tgive up

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