Melanoma: What is it? Symptoms of the disease, prevention and treatment of melanoma

Melanoma - what is it? First of all, it is the most dangerous type of skin cancer. It develops in cells (melanocytes) responsible for the production of melanin - a pigment that gives the skin a certain shade. In some cases, melanoma can appear in the eyes and even in internal organs - for example, in the intestines, esophagus or in the urinary tract.

The exact causes of the tumor remain unknown, but it is proven that exposure to ultraviolet radiation for prolonged exposure to the sun or in the solarium contributes to the development of skin cancer. Accordingly, the risk is reduced by limiting the time spent in direct sunlight or other sources of ultraviolet radiation.

Cancer is often diagnosed in clean and externally healthy areas. Not always from the birthmark develops skin melanoma.

Photo: the initial stage of cancer.

According to statistics, most often melanoma of the skin is diagnosed in people over 40, mainly in women. Knowledge of the primary signs of cancer contributes to early detection of the disease and timely treatment. It is possible to completely eliminate melanoma under the condition of early diagnosis and prevention of the spread of pathology.

Symptoms

This kind of cancer affects all skin areas. The parts of the body most affected by the sun are usually affected: back, legs, hands and face.

It should be remembered that melanoma can occur in the most unexpected places, for example, on the soles of the feet, palms, nail bed. Such hidden tumors are more often diagnosed in people with dark or swarthy skin.

The first signs of the disease include:

• Changes in existing moles;
• The appearance of a pigmented or unusual-looking neoplasm on the skin.

Normal birthmarks

Healthy birthmarks usually have a uniform color - reddish, brown or black. They have clear boundaries that separate them from the rest of the skin. The shape is oval or round, and the size, as a rule, does not exceed six millimeters in diameter (like a round eraser on the tip of a pencil).

Most people on the body have from 10 to 45 nevi, and many appear only to 50 years. True, normal moles can change over time, outwardly, and some even disappear with age.

Atypical pigmentation spots

Behind unusual birthmarks melanoma (photo) can disappear, the initial stage of which rarely causes suspicion in patients.

The classical primary diagnosis of this disease is abbreviated as "ABCDE" and means:

• A: asymmetric shape. Pay special attention to birthmarks of a strange shape. As a rule, if you mentally divide them in half, the resulting halves will be very different from each other.
• B: Uneven borders. The tumor is characterized by a curve, jagged or undulating contour.
• C: changes in color. Dangerous tumors that combine several colors or are characterized by an uneven distribution of shades.
• D: diameter. From a mole with a diameter of more than six millimeters, melanoma may occur (photo). The initial stage, as a rule, is characterized by an increase in size.
• E: evolution (transformation). It is necessary to observe the changes occurring with time, especially if the mole grows in size or changes color or shape. Transformation may also mean the appearance of new symptoms. So, pathological moles start to itch or bleed.

Cancer (malignant) nevi are very diverse. For some, all of the above characteristics are characteristic, while others show only one or two signs of pathology.

Hidden Cancer

Melanoma often develops in areas of the body that are exposed to minimal sunlight. This is the area between the toes, the palms, the soles of the feet, the scalp, the genitals. Such tumors are sometimes called hidden, because they arise in the least typical places. When cancer is diagnosed in black patients, it is almost always a hidden melanoma.

Photo: the initial stage of the melanoma of the toes.

Similar tumors can be found:

• Acrylic Lentiginous Melanoma - What Is It? This is the rare form of the tumor, developing under the fingernail on the finger of the hand or leg. It is also found on the soles of the feet and palms, most often in representatives of the Negroid race and other people with a dark shade of skin;
• In the oral cavity, digestive tract, urinary tract or vagina. This type of melanoma affects the mucous membranes. In such cases, it is especially difficult to make an accurate diagnosis, since the symptoms of skin cancer in such areas are no different from those of other, much more common diseases.
• In eyes. This malignant melanoma most often affects the vascular membrane of the eyeball - a layer located under the sclera (the belly coat). The tumor causes visual disturbances and is often found when examined by the oculist.

You should see a doctor as soon as possible if you notice unusual changes on the skin or the appearance of atypical neoplasms.

Causes

Melanoma arises from a disorder in the structure of melanocytes. In a healthy person, such cells develop in a strict order: the new cells displace the old cells to the surface of the skin where they die and gradually peel off. However, sometimes in some cells the structure of DNA is broken - they cease to obey the established routine and over time form a cluster of cancers.

It is still unknown what exactly damages DNA in skin cells, and why melanoma arises because of this. What is it - genetic predisposition or a whole complex of factors, including ecological and genetic ones? Be that as it may, doctors say that the primary cause of cancer is exposure to sunlight and solarium equipment.

However, ultraviolet does not cause all tumors. Evidence of this is the emergence of pathologies in the body's hidden from the sun (see photo melanoma). So, the causes of the disease may be other circumstances.

Risk factors

Risk factors include:

• Bright skin. The less in the epidermis of pigment (melanin), the weaker its natural protection against harmful ultraviolet. If you have light or red hair, freckles and a tendency to burn quickly in the sun, you are at risk. However, melanoma is diagnosed in people with dark skin, including representatives of the Negroid race.
• Multiple sunburns with the appearance of a variety of blisters increase the risk of skin cancer.
• Prolonged exposure to ultraviolet radiation. Too long stay in the sun or in a solarium threatens the appearance of skin tumors, including melanoma.
• Living in tropical countries. People living near the earth's equator, where the sun's rays shine almost in the direct direction, receive higher doses of ultraviolet radiation.
• Presence of multiple or atypical moles. If you have more than 50 normal nevi on your body, you are at risk. The same applies to people with atypical moles. They are not always pathological in nature, and patients often ask dermatologists about this the same question: why are healthy birthmarks so similar to tumors? Let's see, skin cancer is what? Melanoma is numerous, but in this case, normal concentrations of melanocytes from pathological ones should be distinguished. Unusual neoplasms are called dysplastic nevi and, as a rule, are characterized by a large size, uneven edges and mixed colors.
• Melanoma of the skin in a family history. If a close relative has melanoma, the risk of developing a similar disease becomes higher.
• Weakened immune system. Skin cancer often threatens patients with weak immunity - for example, those who have undergone an operation for transplantation of internal organs.

Screening

Ask your doctor if you need to undergo periodic screening for skin cancer. There are two types of research:

• Skin examination by a qualified specialist. During the examination, the doctor will analyze the condition of your skin from head to toe.
• Examination at home. Self-examination - this is what? Melanoma can be several, and the examination allows you to remember birthmarks, freckles and other normal spots on the skin, so that you can immediately notice any changes. Self-examination is better performed in front of the mirror in full growth, while using a small mirror to check hard-to-reach areas. It is necessary to examine on all sides of the hands and feet, as well as check the inguinal area, scalp, nails, soles of the feet and the areas between the toes.

Diagnostics

Sometimes it is enough to diagnose skin cancer from one appearance of the mole, but biopsy is still the only way to determine oncology. If such an analysis showed a pathological neoplasm, then melanoma develops. What is this procedure? Its essence is quite simple: the doctor completely or partially removes a suspicious mole, and then a thorough examination of the sample taken.

In the diagnosis of melanoma, the following types of studies are prescribed:

• Trepanobiopsy. During this procedure, the doctor uses a tool with a circular blade, which is pressed against the skin around a suspicious mole and a rounded fragment of the tumor is removed.
• Excisional biopsy. With this procedure, remove the entire birthmark, together with a small area surrounding her externally healthy skin.
• Excisional biopsy. If this type of study is assigned, only the most heterogeneous part of the mole or neoplasm is taken for laboratory analysis.

Typically, specialists prefer the first two options for diagnosis, since they allow to completely remove the potentially pathological structure. Injection biopsy is prescribed in cases when complete removal for some reason is impossible or fraught with complications - for example, if the suspicious birthmark is very large. With a significant diameter, the probability is great that a neoplasm is the melanoma of the skin (photo: initial stage).

Early treatment

Under the condition of early diagnosis of cancer, treatment usually consists of a surgical procedure. Melanoma of small diameter can be removed during the biopsy procedure - and no additional manipulation is required. Otherwise, not only the tumor is removed, but part of the healthy skin along with the tissues located under it. At the early stage of the disease, other treatment is usually not prescribed.

Treatment in advanced stages

If malignant melanoma has swept any parts of the body or organs other than the skin, the following treatment methods are used:

• Surgical removal of affected areas. If the cancer has spread to nearby lymph nodes, you will most likely need to remove them.
• Chemotherapy. For such a procedure, specific drugs that destroy cancer cells are used. Medications are administered intravenously, taken orally in the form of tablets, or combine both modes of administration to ensure a higher effectiveness of their action.
• Radiotherapy. This method of treatment implies the use of high-power directional energy, for example, X-ray radiation. Radiotherapy is usually prescribed after removal of melanoma and lymph nodes. Sometimes it is used to relieve symptoms.
• Biotherapy. Biological therapies increase immunity and help the body fight pathological processes. Biopreparations are created from natural bodily fluids or their analogs produced in the laboratory. The side effects of this treatment are similar to those of influenza and include chills, fatigue, fever, headaches and muscle pain.
• Target therapy. In this treatment, medicines are used that target specific properties and specific vulnerabilities of cancer cells. Only melanoma can be treated with such drugs (the initial stage usually does not require the use of targeted therapy), and not healthy cells. Side effects are very diverse, but most often there is fever, chills, dehydration and skin rashes.

In severe cases, the following drugs are prescribed:

• "Vemurafenib";
• Dabrafenib;
• Trametimib.

However, these drugs are effective only in cases when the cancer is caused by a certain gene mutation. In order to evaluate the appropriateness of using the above-mentioned drugs, a specific analysis of the cells taken from the tumor is performed.

Prevention

You can independently reduce the risk of melanoma and other skin cancers if the following measures are taken:

• Avoid being in the sun in the middle of the day. As a rule, the intensity of natural ultraviolet radiation peaks between 11:00 and 16:00. Plan any outdoor activities in the early morning or evening, even if winter has come and the sky is cloudy. Ultraviolet is absorbed by the skin all year round, and the clouds do not provide any protection. People avoiding the sun in the peak of its activity, do not get harmful sunburn or sunburn - both phenomena injure the skin and increase the risk of pathology.
• All the year round, apply to the skin with sunscreen filters. Such creams and lotions do not block the entire flow of dangerous ultraviolet radiation, and even more so of the variety that causes cancer (melanoma and other skin tumors). However, this group of cosmetics plays an important role in the program of general skin protection from negative environmental factors. It is advisable to choose cosmetics with SPF not lower than 15. Cream or lotion is applied in a thick layer and the application is repeated every two hours, and with increased sweating or bathing in water, this should be done more often.
• Wear protective clothing. Cosmetics with SPF do not guarantee complete protection against harmful sun rays. Cover sensitive areas of the skin with dark-colored clothing. Matter should protect hands and feet. You will also need a hat with wide margins - it is much safer than, for example, a cap cap. Do not forget about sunglasses - they should be marked with the ability to block both types of ultraviolet radiation (UVA and UVB rays).
• Avoid visiting solariums, since after exposure to artificially created ultraviolet, melanoma is often detected (photo). The disease progresses rapidly.
• Thoroughly inspect the skin to immediately notice the changes. Regularly check the condition of the epidermis for atypical neoplasms or changes in existing moles, freckles, nodules and birthmarks. Using a mirror, carefully examine the face, neck, ears and scalp, as well as chest, torso and arms from all sides. Then go to the examination of the feet and feet, including the soles and spaces between the toes. It is also necessary to check the inguinal region and skin area between the buttocks. Both superficially spreading and nodular melanoma can develop almost everywhere.

The main thing to remember is that a combination of enhanced prevention and timely diagnosis is the only right step towards a healthy skin.