subject: Signs And Symptoms Of Melanoma Cancer [print this page] Melanoma Cancer starts due to the skin having problems with the Melanocytes cells. Often considered as the most dangerous skin cancer, Melanoma is often not taken seriously in the early stages. This late diagnosis can lead to complications and as the result about 75 percent patients don't survive this skin cancer, for this reason knowing the sign of start of Melanoma Cancer is very important.
Malignant Melanoma Skin cancer is a type of skin cancer that starts in the pigmentation system of the skin. The skin layer that become tanned in the summer. This type of a cancer begins in moles or in different areas of normal looking skin. In rare cases, the tumor may start in the eyes, the intestine, the respiratory passage and the brain.
One of the first warning signs of skin cancer is a noticeable difference in your skin such as a new growth or a persistent sore that will not heal. Other symptoms are a firm, transparent bump or a smooth skin lump with a raised border that may resemble a mole. Watch for red patches of irritated skin or a shiny area of tight skin that looks like a scar.
This type of cancer in a more advanced stage called malignant melanoma, and when diagnosed early, you have a greater chance of survival and success. Malignant melanomas symptoms may show as changes in a mole size, shape, or color; bleeding moles, or moles that itch, or feel sensitive to the touch. Most doctors will examine the mole by cutting a piece of it out. This procedure allows the physician to examine the suspected tissue for cancerous cells.
Melanoma is the deadliest form of skin cancer and has been spreading like wild fire over the last decade. It is curable, but for melanoma treatment to be fully effective, early diagnosis is imperative. Melanoma treatment may take the form of surgery, chemotherapy in early stages, and biological or radiation therapies in extreme cases.
Canine Melanoma Symptoms
Many symptoms are not as easily detected as the normal ones such as odd colored lesions. You should pay attention for abnormal bad breath or bleeding in the mouth or gums as well as bad appetite and loose teeth, too much drooling or trouble swallowing. These are not signs to cancer alone, but none should be ignored at any rate. If there is a tumor, no matter the size, you should see a vet. The faster you get treatment, the better the prognosis.
In early stages, surgery is the only required treatment. In advanced stages if chemotherapy is used, ovarian reserve may be diminished and this may reduce woman's ability to get pregnant. The use of immune therapy is not known to affect future fertility. The effects of newer targeted therapies and vaccines on fertility are also unknown.
Another option is hormone counseling whereas masculine sex bodily hormones are cut down to not so quick the development. It isn't considered to be a cure yet slows the growth belonging to the cancer tissues. The risks of the treatment are impotence, feeling associated with tiredness and also weakened bone fragments and lack of libido.
Because melanoma usually begins on the surface of the skin, a trained health care worker often can detect it at an early stage with a total skin examination. A monthly skin self-exam is important for people who have any of the known risk factors, especially those with dysplastic naevi or those with a very large number of ordinary moles who are at an increased risk of developing a melanoma. A new scanning machine SolarScan, which can detect malignant melanomas early in their course without requirement for a biopsy has recently been launched in Australia.
Many experts feel that many dogs are hereditarily predisposed to canine melanoma so knowing your dog's breeding history can be of help in catching the disease early. Color may also be a factor in predisposition to canine melanoma and darker skinned animals appear to have a higher rate of occurrence as do certain breeds of dogs. Canine melanoma appears most often in dogs over the age of 9, but can occur at any age.
There are several ways in which melanoma can be treated. Surgery is usually the first step taken by doctors in hopes of treating the skin cancer. The most common surgery used is called excisional surgery. This procedure removes the tumor along with a very small amount of tissue. The surgically removed specimen is then sent to a laboratory where it is examined further to determine if the cancerous cells have spread or if they were all successfully removed. In very bad instances, amputation of a finger or toe can occur if melanoma is present in those extremities.
The early detection of melanoma increases the likelihood of effective treatment and survival. Visual identification of abnormally pigmented areas of tissue, comprised of nevus cells and known collectively as nevi, are essential to the diagnosis of melanoma. Searches for new moles and other discolorations in the skin need to be done quite frequently to ensure early detection. The responsibility for this phase of the diagnostic procedure falls primarily on the individual patient.
This procedure is used to remove the tumor and the infected tissue around it. The bigger the tumor is the more tissue that will be removed. Doctors will take the tissue they have removed and will send it to the lab to be examined under the microscope to see if it contains any cancer cells.
