Melanoma is a common, serious form of skin cancer. According to the American Cancer Society, there will be approximately 68,720 new cases of melanoma and approximately 8,650 deaths resulting from melanoma in the United States in 2009. Melanoma occurs when skin cells called melanocytes grow abnormally, clump together and form malignant, or cancerous, growths. This cancer can metastasize, which means it can spread to and damage other organs and tissue.
Location
Melanoma can occur anywhere on the skin, but it generally appears on the area between the shoulders and hips on men and on the lower legs in women. This condition rarely occurs in people who have dark skin, but when it occurs it is usually found on the palms or soles or under the toenails or fingernails.
Risks
Risk factors for melanoma include having more than 50 ordinary moles or the presence of large numbers of abnormal-looking moles called dysplastic nevi; fair skin that burns or freckles easily; personal or family history of melanoma or another type of skin cancer; and a weakened immune system caused by a medical condition or medications. The risk for melanoma increases if you had at least one severe, blistering sunburn in your lifetime. The risk of developing melanoma increases if you spend large amounts of time exposed to ultraviolet, or UV, radiation. This includes UV radiation from the sun, sunlamps and tanning booths.
Signs and Symptoms
Signs and symptoms of melanoma include abnormalities in a new or existing mole. Abnormalities can include a change in symmetry, border, color, diameter or texture. One half of the mole may not match the other half. The border of the mole may appear notched, ragged, irregular or blurred. The mole may appear uneven in color, and the color may be shades of brown, black, tan, gray, white, pink, red or blue. The size of the mole may increase to larger than the eraser of a pencil. The texture of the mole may feel hard or lumpy. Additional symptoms of melanoma include itching, draining or bleeding. Contact your physician if you have a mole that exhibits one or more of these symptoms.
Diagnosis
Diagnosis of melanoma is based on the presence of signs and symptoms, a physical examination and a biopsy. A biopsy is the only definite way to determine if the suspected spot is melanoma. Your physician will biopsy the area by removing all of the suspected tissue or, if the growth is too large, by removing a small sample of the suspected area. The tissue sample is analyzed at a laboratory for the presence of cancer cells. After melanoma is diagnosed, it is staged from 0 to 4 based on severity, with a stage 0 being cancer that is limited to the outer skin layers and a stage 4 being cancer that has spread to other organs or tissues far away from the original cancer site.
Treatment
Treatment choices depend on certain factors, such as your current health status and the stage of the cancer. Melanoma is treated with surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy and biological therapy. The treatments can be used alone or in conjunction with each other, and not all treatments are indicated for every person.
Surgery to remove the growth and some normal tissue around it is the most common melanoma treatment. A skin graft may be required if a large portion of tissue is removed. Radiation therapy kills cancer cells using high-energy rays, and chemotherapy kills cancer cells using medications. Biological therapy involves stimulating your immune system to decrease side effects caused by other cancer treatments and to fight cancer cells.
