What two types of skin cancer are not melanoma?
Nonmelanoma skin cancer refers to all the types of cancer that occur in the skin that are not melanoma. Several types of skin cancer fall within the broader category of nonmelanoma skin cancer, with the most common types being basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma.
What is the most common type of nonmelanoma skin cancer?
Basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma are by far the most common.
What’s the difference between melanoma and nonmelanoma?
What is the Difference Between Melanoma and Nonmelanoma Skin Cancer? Nonmelanoma skin cancer can refer to any cancer that forms in the basal, squamous or Merkel cells of the skin. Melanoma is a cancer that develops in the skin’s melanocytes.
Does non-melanoma skin cancer spread?
Cancer cells can spread from the skin to other parts of the body. This spread is called metastasis. But most non-melanoma skin cancers do not spread to other parts of the body.
Can you have melanoma for years and not know?
How long can you have melanoma and not know it? It depends on the type of melanoma. For example, nodular melanoma grows rapidly over a matter of weeks, while a radial melanoma can slowly spread over the span of a decade. Like a cavity, a melanoma may grow for years before producing any significant symptoms.
Which skin cancer grows fastest?
Merkel cell carcinoma tends to grow fast and to spread quickly to other parts of your body. Treatment options for Merkel cell carcinoma often depend on whether the cancer has spread beyond the skin.
What does a non melanoma look like?
A reddish, raised patch or irritated area that may crust or itch, but rarely hurts. A shiny pink, red, pearly white, or translucent bump. A pink growth with an elevated border and crusted central indentation. A scar-like, white, yellow, or waxy area, often with a poorly defined border.
How long does it take for a skin cancer to develop?
Melanoma can grow very quickly. It can become life-threatening in as little as six weeks and, if untreated, it can spread to other parts of the body. Melanoma can appear on skin not normally exposed to the sun.
Which is worse melanoma or squamous cell?
From the Harvard Health Letter, May 2006
Of the three main types of skin cancer, melanoma is most deadly, and basal cell, most common. Squamous cell cancer falls in between. It’s three times as common as melanoma (some 200,000 new cases each year versus 62,000).
Where does melanoma usually spread to first?
Normally, the first place a melanoma tumor metastasizes to is the lymph nodes, by literally draining melanoma cells into the lymphatic fluid, which carries the melanoma cells through the lymphatic channels to the nearest lymph node basin.
How long can melanoma go untreated?
Melanoma can grow very quickly. It can become life-threatening in as little as six weeks and, if untreated, it can spread to other parts of the body.
Where does melanoma usually start?
Melanomas can develop anywhere on the skin, but they are more likely to start on the trunk (chest and back) in men and on the legs in women. The neck and face are other common sites.