Health Network News

The diagnosis of skin cancer can be devastating. It is a scary time and you may be wondering what you should do next. If your skin cancer has been detected in its early stages your chance of survival is very good.

The best chance of keeping skin cancer under control is to be aware of your skin and notice any changes early enough to catch it before it progresses. Your odds of beating it greatly improve if you are proactive and catch it early.

During skin cancer’s first stages you will learn whether or not you have a non-melanoma skin cancer or melanoma. In the early stages, the survival rate is quite good for both. With basal cell carcinoma, spread past second stage is rare. For that reason, the prognosis for this type of skin cancer is generally quite good.

Being diagnosed with melanoma skin cancer it can be scary. The good news is with early detection the stage I and stage II survival rate is very good, almost 100% for 5 years. However, if it’s found at stage 3 the survival rate drops to 60%. This stresses the importance for early detection, as it’s the biggest cure for melanoma skin cancer.

It’s absolutely imperative to inspect your skin on a regular basis at least once every month for signs of skin cancer. You should also see a physician regularly so that your skin can be examined as a part of your routine physical. If you detect anything suspicious on your skin you need to get it inspected by a doctor right away, especially if you have a discoloration or mole that seems to be changing shape and or color.

If you have a wound that will not heal, it could possibly be melanoma. Check with your doctor as to what to look for when conducting a self inspection of your skin. Knowing what to look will make it a lot easier to report any condition that may be of concern.

In its early stage, skin cancer can be quite small. The average size is that of a pea. However, skin cancer will grow progressively larger. If left untreated, it will metastasize to other organs and progress throughout the body. As this happens, rate of survival drops exponentially. The more involved the cancer, the more involved methods of treatment become.