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Skin Cancer on Face
Skin cancer is most commonly found on areas of the skin that have had a lot of sun exposure, including the face, scalp, lips, ears, chest, neck, arms, legs, and hands. Despite this, it has been known to also show up on places of the body that infrequently see sun, such as beneath your fingernails, between your toes or under your toenails, or on your palms. Skin cancer can affect people with all skin tones, even people with darker complexions. A skin lesion that is cancerous can develop slowly or can appear all of a sudden, and this is primarily determined by the type of skin cancer.
Types of Skin Cancer
Basal Cell Carcinoma: This is the most easily and most commonly treated cancer. It is also the least likely to spread. Basal cell carcinoma usually appears in the following forms: a pearly or waxy looking bump on your ears, neck, or face, or a flat flesh colored or or brown scar like lesion that appears on your back or chest.
Basal Cell Carcinoma
Squamos Cell Carcinoma: Squamos Cell Carcinoma can be treated easily if it is detected early, but it can be very quick to spread. It usually appears as one of the following: a firm red nodule that appears on your lips, ears, neck, hands, arms, or face, or a flat lesion that has a scaly crusted surface that appears on your arms, hands, neck, ears, or face.
Squamos Cell Carcinoma
Melanoma: This is the most serious form of skin cancer; in fact, it is the kind that is responsible for the most deaths due to skin cancer. It can develop anywhere on your body, but appears most frequently on the head, neck, or trunk of men and the arms and legs of women. There are some warning signs to look out for with melanoma. The first warning sign is a brownish spot that has darker speckles and can be located anywhere on the body. The second warning sign to be aware of is when a simple mole located anywhere on your body can change in size, color, or feel, or if it begins to bleed, A third sign is a tiny lesion with a border that is irregular with red, white, blue, or blue-black spots found on your trunk or on your limbs. The fourth warning sign is shiny, firm and dome shaped bumps that can be found anywhere on the body. The final warning sign to watch out for is dark lesions on your palms, fingertips and toes, soles of your feet, or on the mucous membranes in your mouth, nose, anus, and vagina.
Melanoma Skin Cancer
Kaposi Sarcoma: This is a less common form of skin cancer that develops in the skin's blood vessels. It causes red or purple patches on the skin or on the mucous membranes. This is a serious form of skin cancer, and is usually observed in people who have weak immune systems, such as people taking medications that suppress their natural immunity (people who have undergone transplants) or with people who have AIDS.
Merkel Cell Carcinoma: This is another rare form of skin cancer. This form of skin cancer appears as shiny nodules that occur just beneath or on the skin and in hair follicles. These nodules may be the colors red, blue, or pink, and can be anywhere from about a quarter of an inch to about two inches. This form of cancer is typically found in areas that are sun-exposed, such as on the head, neck, legs, and arms. Merkel Cell Carcinoma will grow fast and spread very quickly.
Sebaceous Gland Carcinoma: This cancer is very rare, yet also is very aggressive. It starts in the oil glands found in the skin. The sebaceous gland carcinomas typically show up as very hard yet painless nodules. Although they can appear anywhere, they often appear on the eyelid.
Sebaceous Gland Carcinoma
There are also precancerous skin lesions which can develop into squamos cell skin cancer. This is known as actinic keratoses, and it appears as brown or dark pink rough, scaly patches. Most commonly, they are found on the ears, face, lower arms and the hands of people with fair skin who have had their skin damaged by the sun. It is extremely important that if you suspect that you may have any of these forms of skin cancer that you see a dermatologist immediately. Early detection and treatment is so important.
Skin cancer actually starts in the top layer of your skin called the epidermis. This skin is super thin and provides a protective layer of skin cells that your body is always shedding. It contains three types of cells: squamos cells, basal cells,and melanocytes. Squamos cells are just below the outer surface and act as the inner lining of the skin. Basal cells are directly underneath the squamos cells and produce new skin cells. Melanocytes are the cells which produce melanin in the skin, the pigment that gives our skin its color. These cells are found in the lower part of your epidermis. These melanocytes protect the deeper layers of your skin by producing more melanin. More melanin produces tanned skin. If you have healthy skin, your healthy new skin cells will push the older cells to the skin surface where they eventually shed. When this process malfunctions, skin cancer can occur. This process is actually controlled by DNA, and when it malfunctions, new cells can begin to grow out of control, forming a mass of cancerous cells.
A lot of the damage to the DNA in skin cells is a result of ultraviolet radiation which is found in sunlight and commercial tanning lamps in tanning beds. There are three different types of UV light: Ultraviolet A (UVA), Ultraviolet B (UVB), and Ultraviolet C (UVC). Only the UVA and UVB rays actually make it to the earth and our bodies. UVC is absorbed by atmospheric ozone. UVB contributes to sunburn and many basal cell and squamos cell cancers. UVA also contributes to skin cancer by penetrating the skin deeper than the UVB does. This results in a weakening of the skin's immune system and will increase your chances of developing cancer, particularly malanoma. Tanning beds have very high doses of UVA, which makes them dangerous for you.
There are other factors that may additionally contribute to skin cancer. Heredity can play a role, as can exposure to radiation treatments or to toxic chemicals.
There are also some risk factors to be aware of that may increase your chances of developing skin cancer.
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Fair Skin: When you have less pigment or melanin in your skin, then you have less natural protection from the damaging UV radiation. You are much more likely to develop skin cancer if you freckle or sunburn easily or if y ou have blond or red hair. Also light colored eyes makes you more at risk.
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History of Sunburns: Whenever you get sunburned, you are damaging your skin cells, and furthermore you are increasing your risk of developing skin cancer. After getting a sunburn, your body has to work to repair the damage the sun has caused. Having multiple sunburns as a child, teenager, and adult puts you at risk of developing skin cancer.
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Excessive Sun Exposure: If you spend a lot of time in the sun, you have an increased risk of developing skin cancer. This is especially true if you do not wear sunscreen or your skin is not covered with clothing. Tanning also puts you at further risk. A tan is actually your skin's response to the injury of UV radiation.
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Moles: People who have a lot of moles or abnormal moles are at increased risk. Abnormal moles are those that are larger and look irregular. Be sure to watch them carefully for any changes.
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Precancerous Skin Lesions: Having actinic keratoses can increase your risk. They appear as rough and scaly patches that are brown to dark pink and are most commonly seen on the lower arms, face, and hands of fair skinned people with sun damaged skin.
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Living in Sunny Climates or High Altitudes: If you are exposed to more sunlight, you are at higher risk. Also living at higher elevations exposes you to more radiation because you are closer to where the sunlight is the strongest.
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Family History of Skin Cancer: If you have a parent or a sibling with skin cancer, you are at increased risk.
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Personal History of Skin Cancer: Once you have had skin cancer once, you are at increased risk for developing it again. Some cancers will even develop in the same area once they have already been removed once.
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Weakened Immune System: People who have a weak immune system have a greater chance of developing skin cancer.
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Fragile Skin: If you have had skin that is weakened for some reason, you are at greater risk of developing skin cancer. Some of these conditions may be a result of psoriasis treatment or eczema creams.
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Exposure to Environmental Hazards: Hazards such as certain herbicides and chemicals can increase your risk.
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Age: With age, your risk of developing skin cancer increases. The damage that has occurred in childhood and in adolescence may not show up until later in life. Some cancers, however, are showing up at alarming rates among women under 40 years of age.
Seeking the Help of a Doctor:
If you notice any new skin growth, change in your skin, or change in a mole, you need to see your doctor. Your doctor may suspect skin cancer by observation of the skin, but may also need to take a biopsy, which is a small sampling of your skin in order to have a proper scientific analysis of your skin in a lab. A biopsy is usually performed in the doctor's office with a local anesthetic. If you do have skin cancer, there are two stages: local is when the cancer affects only the skin, but metastatic is when cancer has spread beyond just the skin.
Treatment of Skin Cancer:
The treatment varies depending on the type and severity of the skin cancer. For example, abnormal cells may just need to be surgically removed or even destroyed with topical medications. Most of these treatments can take place in an outpatient setting. In some cases, additional treatment may be needed. Those treatments may include:
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Freezing: Your doctor can freeze early skin cancers with liquid nitrogen. Then the dead tissue will come off when it thaws. This procedure may leave behind a small, white scar. Additional treatments may be necessary to rid the skin of the growth.
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Excisional Surgery: The doctor will cut out the cancerous tissue and may remove some of the extra normal skin around the cancerous skin as well. This can result in scarring.
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Laser Therapy: A laser beam of light can vaporize the growths. This treatment causes minimal bleeding, swelling, and scarring. This also causes little damage to the surrounding tissues.
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Mohs Surgery: For difficult to treat surgery, your doctor may need to remove the skin by layers until there are no more layers of abnormal cells remaining.
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Curettage and Electrodesiccation: After the majority of the growth is already removed, your doctor may need to use a circular blade to scrape away layers of cancer cells. An electric needle can also be used to destroy any remaining cancer cells. It will leave a small, white, flat scar.
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Radiation Therapy: When surgery isn't possible, radiation may be used to destroy squamous and basal cell carcinomas.
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Chemotherapy: Chemotherapy is when drugs are used to kill cancer cells. Topical drugs may even be applied directly to the skin, which often cause severe inflammation and leave scars.
Preventing Skin Cancer:
In many cases, skin cancer can be prevented. Here are some tips to follow.
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Wear sunscreen year round. Although sunscreens won't filter out all harmful UV radiation, they do help block UVA rays. Use a sunscreen with an SPF of at least 15. Put sunscreen on all exposed areas, including the face, lips, ears, hands, feet, and neck. It is best if you apply the sunscreen twenty to thirty minutes before being exposed to the sun, and you should reapply it every two hours, especially if swimming or exercising.
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Wear protective clothing. Even sunscreens do not completely protect you from sun exposure; therefore, it is a good idea to wear dark clothing that covers your arms and legs as well as a wide brimmed hat to cover your face. Sunglasses are also a good idea. Look for sunglasses that will protect your eyes from UVA and UVB rays.
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Avoid the sun before 10 a.m. and 4 a.m. This is when the sun's rays are the strongest, so try to avoid the sun during these times if possible. Play outside in the shade or go out at other times of the day.
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Do not use tanning beds. Tanning beds release UVA rays which can penetrate deeply into your skin and cause precancerous skin lesions.
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Be careful with sun-sensitizing medications. Did you know that many common medications that are prescription and over the counter cause your skin to be more sensitive to sunlight? Some of these medications include antibiotics, high blood pressure and diabetes medicines, birth control pills, ibuprofen, and some acne medications. Be sure to check with your doctor to see if your specific medication makes you more sensitive to the sun.
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Observe your skin. Look at your skin on a regular basis and see if there are any changes occurring. If there are changes that you are seeing, you need to speak to your doctor. If it is indeed skin cancer, the earlier you catch it, the better.
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Get regular skin exams. If you are over 40 years old, you should ask your doctor for a skin exam every year.
Final Thoughts:
Through my research about skin cancer, I have learned a lot, and it is very alarming. I am fair skinned myself. I also have a family history of skin cancer. My grandfather had it and went through the cutting out of his skin. My father has precancerous skin, and he has had it frozen off. All my life, I have seemed to be obsessed with having tan skin. I guess we want what we can't have. I love to lay out in the sun and get a tan. My mom used to always tell me that if my grandfather saw me, he would be so upset. I think that the truth has finally hit me. While I like having a healthy tan, nothing, and I mean nothing is worth going through the treatment of skin cancer. What good is the beauty of a nice tan when as an adult you have to have skin cut out or burned off? Please take this knowledge and apply it to your life just as I will be applying it to mine. I just pray that I haven't already done too much damage already.
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Add Your Comments about Skin Cancer on Face: |
So skin cancer has increased dramatically among women under 40 - during this same period, skin cancer education has increased & the sun block industry has also began offering much stronger blocks than ever before: I don't think it takes a genius to figure out that alot of that sun block contains carcinogens. Folks may not be getting sunburned but they may continue to still be exposed to a lethal combination of UV rays and toxins. I don't wear any chemical block, I just watch my exposure in the sun. Sun block gives a fake sense of protecting the skin IMHO along with a ton of god-knows-what chenicals just to keep the suntan industry going.