Skin Cancer: 3 Types, Symptoms, And Causes

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Skin cancer is a type of cancer that grows in skin tissues. This condition is characterized by changes in the skin, such as the appearance of a lump, spotting, or moles of abnormal shape and size.

Skin cancers are allegedly strongly caused by exposure to ultraviolet rays from the sun. This UV rays can cause damage to the cells of the skin, causing skin cancer.

Skin Cancer Types

There are three most common types of skin cancers:

Basal cell carcinoma

Basal cell carcinoma, which is skin cancer derived from cells in the deepest part of the outer skin layer (epidermis).

Squamous cell carcinoma

Squamous cell carcinoma, which is skin cancer derived from cells in the middle and outer parts of the epidermis.

Melanoma

Melanoma, which is skin cancer derived from the skin pigment producing cell (melanocytes).

Melanoma cancer is less common than basal cell carcinoma or squamous cell carcinoma, but is more harmful.

Skin Cancer Symptoms

Basal cell carcinoma (BCC)

Arise in areas that are often exposed to sunlight, such as the neck or face.
Soft and shiny bumps on the skin.
Lesions are flat with dark brown skin or reddish brown like meat.

Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC).

It occurs in areas of sun-exposed skin, but in dark-skinned people, it often arises on the skin of the body that is rarely exposed to sunlight.
Hard red bumps on the skin.
Lesions on the skin are flat-shaped and flaky hard as the crust.

Melanoma

This skin cancer can grow in any area of the skin, including in existing moles and can turn malignant. In males, this cancer usually appears on the face and body. Meanwhile, the part of the female body that is generally affected by this cancer is in the lower limbs.

However, in areas of the skin that are rarely exposed to sunlight also risk melanoma appears. This disease can also happen to anyone, not an exception to dark skinned people. The following symptoms of melanoma:

It can arise in any part of the skin and on any skin color.
A new mole arises or a change in the form of the old moles.
Moles are irregular shaped.
Moles change shape and size after a while.
Moles have a diameter greater than 6 millimeters.
Moles have more than one color.
Moles have uneven, rough edges.
Moles feel itchy and can bleed.
There is a brown lump with black spots on the lump.
The appearance of small wounds to the skin with irregular edges and red, white, blue, or blackish blue.
In the palm of the hand, the soles of the feet, fingertips, or legs, appear dark-colored lesions.
It appears dark lesions of the mucous membranes in the mouth, nose, Miss V, or anus.

Read also: Difference in mole and skin tag

Skin Cancer Causes

The sunlight radiation and mutation errors in the cell DNA are allegedly strong to cause skin cancer. Mutations cause cells to grow out of control to form cancer cell masses.

Cancer cells usually start to grow in the upper layer of the skin or epidermis. The epidermis has three main cell types:

Squamous cells located just below the outer surface and serve as the inner layers of the skin
Basal cell that is below the squamous cell and produce a new skin cell
Melanocytes located at the very bottom of the epidermis and are tasked with giving pigment color to the skin

Cancer cells that grow on the skin layer are generally caused by excessive exposure to ultraviolet rays (UV). UV radiation can damage skin cells to make them become the forerunner of cancer. But in addition, it is not known exactly why cancer cells can also attack a closed area.