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MALIGNANT MELANOMA
WHAT
IS MELANOMA?
Melanoma is a disease of the skin in which malignant cancer
cells are found in the cells that color the skin (melanocytes).
Melanoma usually occurs in adults, but it may occasionally be
found in children and adolescents. Your skin protects your body
against heat, light, infection, and injury.
It
is made up of two main layers: the epidermis (the top layer)
and dermis (the inner layer). Melanocytes are found in the epidermis
and they contain melanin, which gives the skin its color. Melanoma
is sometimes called cutaneous melanoma or malignant melanoma.
Melanoma is a more serious than the more common skin cancers,
Basal Cell Carcinoma or Squamous
Cell Carcinoma, which begin in the basal or squamous cells
of the epidermis. Like most cancers, melanoma is best treated
when it is detected early. Melanoma can spread (metastasize)
quickly to other parts of the body through the lymph system
or through the blood. (Lymph nodes are small, bean-shaped structures
that are found throughout the body; they produce and store infection-fighting
cells.)
You should see your doctor if you have any of the following warning signs of melanoma:
- change in the size, shape, or color of a mole
- oozing or bleeding from a mole
- a mole that feels itchy, hard, lumpy, swollen, or tender to the touch
Melanoma
can also appear on the body as a new mole. Men most often get
melanoma on the trunk (the area of the body between the shoulders
and hips) or on the head or neck; women most often get melanoma
on the arms and legs. If you have signs of skin cancer, ask
your dermatologist to examine your skin. If a mole or pigmented
area doesn't look normal, your doctor will cut it out (called
local excision) and a dermatopathologist will determine a diagnosis.
STAGE
EXPLANATION
Once melanoma is found, more tests will be done to find out
if cancer cells have spread to other parts of the body. This
is called staging. Your doctor needs to know the stage of your
disease to plan treatment. The following stages are used for
melanoma:
Stage
I Melanoma
Cancer is found in the outer layer of the skin (epidermis) and/or
the upper part of the inner layer of skin (dermis), but it has
not spread to nearby lymph nodes. The tumor is less than 1.5
millimeters (1/16 of an inch) thick.
Stage
II Melanoma
The tumor is 1.5 millimeters to 4 millimeters (less than 1/6
of an inch) thick. It has spread to the lower part of the inner
layer of skin (dermis), but not into the tissue below the skin
or into nearby lymph nodes.
Stage
III Melanoma
Any of the following mean that the tumor is stage III:
- The tumor is more than 4 millimeters (approximately 1/6 of an inch) thick.
- The tumor has spread to the body tissue below the skin.
- There are additional tumor growths within one inch of the original tumor (satellite tumors).
- The
tumor has spread to nearby lymph nodes or there are additional
tumor growths (satellite tumors) between the original tumor
and the lymph nodes in the area.
Stage
IV Melanoma
The tumor has spread to other organs or to lymph nodes far away
from the original tumor.
Recurrent
Recurrent disease means that the cancer has come back (recurred)
after it has been treated. It may come back in the original
site or in another part of the body.
