LESION, BROWN, WITH IRREGULAR BORDER
Posted on April 9, 2009, under General health.
Description and Possible Medical Problems
We have all noticed minute changes in our skin, whether a new mole that has suddenly appeared or a scar that appears to be invisible—until we get a sunburn or a tan.
If you notice that a small patch of skin on your face or body has turned dark brown and has an irregular border, you may have malignant melanoma, which is the most dangerous type of skin cancer to have.
Basal cell carcinoma the other types of skin cancer, are easy to treat because they don’t spread, or metastasize, to other pans of the body. Malignant melanoma, however, can quickly spread throughout the lymphatic system.
Melanoma develops as a lesion on the skin or inside moles or other skin growths; it starts in the cells that provide pigment to the skin. While some benign tumors later become malignant, malignant melanoma starts out as cancerous cells and does not develop from a previously benign growth.
As with basal and squamous cell carcinomas, malignant melanoma tends to occur in people who have had a significant amount of exposure to the sun, such as sailors, farmers, and construction workers.
Treatment
The moment you notice any change in a mole or in a dark brown, irregularly shaped patch of skin on your face or body, see your doctor. It’s important to treat malignant melanoma before it has a chance to spread, because it does metastasize so rapidly.
Your doctor will take a biopsy of your skin to determine if the growth is benign or malignant. If it is malignant, she will remove the tumor under local anesthesia, usually on an outpatient basis. If the growth has appeared near a lymph gland in your neck, your doctor will probably remove the gland as well, to guard against further spread. If your doctor believes the melanoma has spread into the muscle or bone, he may also order chemotherapy or radiation treatment.
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