Skin Cancer Types

Skin cancer types can be common or rare. There are more than three types of skin cancer. However, there are three skin cancer types that are vastly more common than the others. Those are:

1. Basal cell carcinoma,
2. Squamous cell skin cancer and
3. Malignant melanoma.

Ninety-nine percent of skin cancers are one of these.

Malignant melanoma is the most lethal form of the common skin cancers. The cause of melanoma is unknown. Less than five percent of stage IV malignant melanomas survive after five years.

A few people with squamous cell skin cancer experience metastasis. Most of these patients survive. Practically no basal cell carcinoma metastasizes so it is an easy cancer to survive.

The Skin Cancer Signs are Different for the Different Cancers

Each of the types of skin cancer look different from one another. Basal cell cancer looks like a small pearly dome-shaped bump. Basal cell cancer can ulcerate and form an irregular sore. It is important to remove a basal cell cancer even if it doesn’t metastasize because it can go deep to the tissues.

Squamous cell carcinoma looks like a scaly patch of red or light brown skin. It can be slightly raised and can get even scalier. It can go deep into the skin and can metastasize to other tissues of the body.

Malignant melanoma looks like a pigmented lesion that can be raised or not. It can come from an existing mole or from normal tissue. It can easily go to other body tissues such as the lung, bone and colon. It can be lethal if not treated early.

Rare Types of Skin Cancer

There are some rare types of skin cancer. The skin cancer signs of these rare skin cancer types are unique. For example, there is a cancer called a cutaneous T-cell lymphoma. It is a blood cell cancer that shows up in the skin. About 1500 cases show up per year in those over age 50.

The most common type is mycosis fungoides. It looks like flat red patches parts of the skin. They itch a lot and might by dry or scaly. Men get it twice as often as women. The patches get thicker as it grows bigger.
Chemotherapy is used to treat cutaneous T-cell lymphoma. There are usually too many patches for the doctors to remove them using surgery.

Merkel Cell Carcinoma

Merkel Cell Carcinoma or MCC is another of the rare type of skin cancer. It forms just under the skin or on top of the skin. About 1200 patients are diagnosed with this skin cancer m. The number keeps increasing over the years. Most people are white and are of an average age of 69 years old.

Lesions of MCC look like firm lumps that are painless. The skin cancer signs are hard to recognize because they are so painless. They are found only on sun-exposed areas.

The treatment for MCC is surgery, followed by radiation therapy and chemotherapy. Some people die from this disease but it is not common.

Kaposi’s sarcoma

Kaposi’s sarcoma is a cancer caused by the herpes virus. It is common in people who have AIDS. It can happen in those who have other immune system problems that aren’t HIV positive. Transplant recipients can get Kaposi Sarcoma as well.

Kaposi Sarcoma looks purple, red or brown and form blotches or tumors on the skin. It can be painful, especially if it grows in the groin, legs or around the eyes. It can become life threatening if it moves to the lungs, liver or colon.

Treatment for skin cancer caused by Kaposi Sarcoma is strong anti-retroviral medications along with topical medicines and surgical removal. Some blotches of Kaposi Sarcoma are removed using cryotherapy. This kills the surface cells in superficial lesions.

Sebaceous Gland Carcinoma

SGC is a very rare cancer of the skin. It is aggressive and originates in the oil glands. Most occur first around the eyes (75 percent), especially the upper lid. It is also found on the neck or head or in the genital area.

Sebaceous cell carcinoma occurs usually in women older than aged 70 years. Only about 20 percent of cases spread to other body areas and it grows slowly. It is an oil tumor because it comes from oil glands. Surgery and radiation help this cancer.

Dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans

It is also called DFSP. It looks like a hard nodule that grows very slowly and does not usually travel to other body areas. It is a genetic type of skin cancer that travels in families. The tumors are found in the dermis of the skin. Treatment includes surgery, radiation and chemotherapy.

Treatments for Skin Cancer

The treatments for all skin cancer types are:

• Surgery or cryotherapy to remove the bulk of the tumor (or the entire tumor)
• Chemotherapy for metastatic disease
• Radiation therapy to remove obvious areas of tumor or suspected residual tumor after surgery

Conclusion

You have learned all about types of skin cancer. Treatments for skin cancer are available with a dermatologist. If you have any skin cancer questions, please send them our way. We are always happy to hear from our readers.

Written by: Dr. Christine Traxler
Edited by: Margaret Stenerson
July 12, 2010