Melanoma
Melanoma is the most serious type of skin cancer. Over 8,000 people develop melanoma each year in the UK, compared to 62,000 people with non-melanoma skin cancers.
A melanoma is usually found on the skin but, rarely, can occur in the eye and underneath the nail. The biggest cause of melanoma is sunlight, particularly for people who have been intensively exposed to the sun in childhood.
Protecting skin from the effects of the sun is an important way of preventing skin cancers. A melanoma will usually develop in a mole and changes will be noticed in its shape or colour, or that is bleeding, oozing or itching.
A diagnosis is made by removing and examining the suspect area of skin. The principal treatment is surgery to remove the melanoma and surrounding skin. Skin grafts (skin taken from another part of the body and grafted over the wound) may be necessary if a large area has to be removed.
If the disease has spread to other parts of the body, chemotherapy or immunotherapy (a type of biological therapy aiming to increase the ability of the body’s immune system to attack cancer cells) may also be used.
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Sunbed use may be implicated in the development of melanoma
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A UK-wide skin cancer prevention campaign is co-ordinated by Cancer Research UK www.cancerresearchuk.org/sunsmart
Further information
Cancerbackup
www.cancerbackup.org.uk
CancerHelp
www.cancerhelp.org.uk
Wessex Cancer Trust
www.wessexcancer.org
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