Skin
Cancer
Audience: High
School Students
Heather Verity

WHAT IS SKIN CANCER?
 Abnormal growth of skin cells
 Sun exposure
 3 types:
 Basal cell carcinoma
 Squamous cell carcinoma
 Melanoma

BASAL CELL CARCINOMA
 Most common
 Areas with most sun exposure
 Appearance:
 Pearly or waxy bump
 Flat, skin-colored/brown lesion

BASAL CELL CARCINOMA CONTINUED
 Symptoms:
 Skin sore that doesn’t heal/bleeds easily
 Scar-like sore
 Irregular blood vessels in the area
 A sore with a sunken area in the middle
 Grows slowly and painlessly
 Almost never spreads

SQUAMOUS CELL CARCINOMA
 Sun-exposed areas
 Appearance:
 Firm, red nodule
 Flat lesion with scaly, crusty surface

SQUAMOUS CELL CARCINOMA CONTINUED
 Bowen’s Disease
 Symptoms:
 Initial area larger than 1 inch
 Growing bump with rough, scaly surface and flat reddish patches
 Sore that doesn’t heal

MELANOMA
 Not as common
 Leading cause of death
 Changes in melanocytes
 4 different types;
 Superficial spreading melanoma
 Nodular melanoma
 Lentigo maligna melanoma
 Acral lentiginous melanoma

SUPERFICIAL SPREADING MELANOMA
 Most common
 Caucasians
 Symptoms:
 Flat
 Irregular in shape and color

NODULAR MELANOMA
 Begins as a raised area
 Dark blackish blue/red
 No color

LENTIGO MALIGNA MELANOMA
 Elderly
 Sun damaged skin
 Symptoms:
 Large, flat areas
 Tan or brown skin

ACRAL LENTIGINOUS MELANOMA
 Least common
 Most in African Americans
 Palms, soles, under nails

Asymmetry
THE ‘ABCDE’ SYSTEM
Diameter
Borders
Color
Evolution

 Non-Melanoma:
 Excision
 Cryosurgery
 Medication
 Photodynamic therapy
 Melanoma:
 Surgery
 Chemotherapy
 Immunotherapy
 Radiation
TREATMENT

WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
 Past 3 decades- more skin cancer than any other kind
 1 in 5 Americans
 More new cases than combined breast, prostate, lung, colon
 Premature aging
 90% of the visible changes

WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
 Indoor tanning:
 170,000 annual skin cancer cases
 75% increased risk of melanoma if used before 35
 More than once a month=55% more likely
 68,000+ diagnosed with Melanoma/year
 1 out of 8 will die

WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
 A tan is a sign of DNA damage
 Sunburn
 Doubles your chances

 Courtney
 16
 Wide excision surgery
 Interferon treatment
 Liver damage
 80% recurrence rate
 Other True Stories
IT CAN HAPPEN TO YOU!

Sunscreen
• SPF 15+
• Broad-Spectrum
Sunglasses
Clothing
Shade
Exams
• Self
• Dermatologist
PREVENTION

ALTERNATIVES
 Spray tan
 Self tanning lotions
Stamp of approval!

 Natural, healthy skin
 Stop associating tanned skin with beauty
 Mineral makeup

BE AN ADVOCATE!
 Congress to increase indoor tanning regulations
 Fundraiser
 Sun safety at schools
 Community

BE SUN SMART!

REFERENCES
 http://www.skincancer.org/
 http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/skin-cancer/DS00190
 http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types/skin
 http://abcnews.go.com/Health/indoor-tanning-tied-170000-skin-cancersannually/story?id=17380395
 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001853/