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Melanoma What You Need to Know About Diagnosis and Treatment

Melanoma is an aggressive skin cancer that is treatable, even curable if caught early. Expert review of diagnosis, treatment, &amp; prevention.<br>

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Melanoma What You Need to Know About Diagnosis and Treatment

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  1. Melanoma: What You Need to Know About Diagnosis and Treatment By The Doctor Weighs In

  2. Melanoma is known as malignant melanoma or cutaneous melanoma, an aggressive form of skin cancer. It arises from the cells that give skin its color, the pigment-producing cells present in the epidermis called melanocytes.

  3. What are The Risk Factors for Melanoma? Sun exposure Fair skin Moles History of skin cancer A family history of melanomaWeakened immune system

  4. The Signs & Symptoms of Melanoma • Benign healthy moles are far more common than melanomas. But distinguishing between the two can be difficult. Any change in an existing mole or the development of a new pigmented or unusual-looking new mole may be the first signs of melanoma.

  5. The ABCDE Guideline An analytical method to help detect early melanoma is the ABCDE guideline. Some or all of these features are manifested in most melanomas: • Asymmetry – one half of the growth does not look like the other half • Border Irregularity- Edges of the mole are uneven or blurred • Color Variability –uneven coloring or multiple shades of color, like brown, black, and red • Diameter – Larger than 5 mm in size (the size of a pencil eraser) • Evolving or Changing – any change in appearance (size, shape, or color) or if the growth bleeds or itches

  6. What are The Different Types of Melanoma? There are several different types of melanoma. The most common type is superficial spreading melanoma.

  7. Superficial Spreading Melanoma

  8. Nodular Melanoma

  9. Lentigo Maligna Melanoma

  10. Acral-lentiginous Melanoma

  11. Amelanotic Melanoma Variant

  12. How Do You Stage Malignant Melanoma? The staging system most often used for melanomas is based on the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) TNM system. The TNM staging system is a very detailed system. • T: The T refers to the size and extent of the primary tumor. • N: Refers to the number of nearby lymph nodes where cancer is detected on pathologic exam. • M: Whether the tumor has metastasized to spread to regional lymph nodes or to other organs or areas of the body. • Physicians and cancer registries often refer to a five-stage system that groups the TNM stages into a less-detailed staging system.

  13. What is The Prognosis of Malignant Melanoma? The prognosis of melanoma patients depends on the stage of the disease at the time of initial presentation.

  14. What is The Treatment for Malignant Melanoma? The type of treatment for melanoma depends on the location, size, and stage of the cancer. It also depends on the patient’s health and, on patients’ personal preferences.

  15. Prevention To reduce the risk of melanoma and other skin cancer types: • Avoid midday sun exposure: Sunlight intensity is strongest between 10 AM and 4 PM. Therefore, you should schedule daily activities in the early morning or later in the afternoon when possible. And remember to do this even in the winter and on cloudy days. • Seek shade: especially midday when the sun’s rays are most intense. • Sunscreen: Liberally apply a broad-spectrum sunscreen with an SPF of 30 or higher on all exposed surfaces year-round. Be sure to reapply it often, especially after sweating or swimming. • Avoid tanning lamps and tanning beds. • Perform monthly self-exams: With the help of a hand-held mirror, examine the skin on all body parts. Look for new growths or changes in existing moles, freckles, or birthmarks.

  16. The Bottom Line • To summarize, melanoma is an aggressive skin cancer but it is treatable – even curable – if caught early. • To Read The Full Article, Please Click here: https://bit.ly/3zrKdA4

  17. Contact Us The Doctor Weighs In Website: https://thedoctorweighsin.com/ Email: info@thedoctorweighsin.com

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