Skin cancer, melanoma and age spots

Medical terms

Non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC), BCC, SCC, Melanoma, actinic keratoses

Common terms

Skin cancer, rodent ulcer, sunspots, brown spots, freckles, melanoma, age spots

Overview

Exposure to the sun over time causes damage to the skin, resulting in premature ageing of the skin and increasing the risk of melanoma, sunspots and other forms of skin cancer. With more of us taking holidays abroad we are now seeing a greater occurrence of these conditions. It is a myth that one needs to have experienced sunburn in order to develop a melanoma or skin cancer.

Symptoms and signs

NMSC presents as either a skin coloured lump, a scaling lesion, an erosion that will not heal or an ulcerated lesion.  Any such lesion requires immediate assessment by a medical practitioner.  Dermatologists are specifically trained to diagnose such lesions by looking at them and if there is any doubt by performing a biopsy.

Treatment

Prevention is the best cure.  At present there is no system better than the expertly trained human eye at clinically diagnosing melanoma.

Treatment options available may include the use of special creams to kill the cancer cells, scraping the lesion away to the appropriate depth, cutting the lesion out, freezing the lesion with liquid nitrogen, or photodynamic therapy or occasionally radiotherapy.  The choice of treatment will depend on the tumour type and the personal preference of the patient.

Also see Moles