Skin Cancer

Skin Cancer

Cancer is a word used to describe a group of diseases. Each has its own

name, its own treatment, and its own chances of being cured. Each is

different from the others in many ways, but every cancer, whatever its called

or whatever part of the body it is located in, is a disease of the body’s

cells. The millions of tiny cells that make up the human body are so small

that they can be seen only by looking through a microscope. There are

different kinds of cells, but they all make new cells by dividing into two.

This is how worn-out, old cells are replaced with strong new ones. When a

cell changes and doesn’t do the job it should do for the body, it divides into

more cells like itself, then these cells keep dividing into more cells. A

group of these cells is a tumor. There are two kinds of tumors. A benign

tumor is not cancer. The cells of a benign tumor can crowd out healthy cells,

but they cannot spread to other parts of the body. A malignant tumor is

cancer. Like a benign tumor, it can take over other healthy cells around it,

but it can also spread to other parts of the body. To do this, a cell or

group of cells from the tumor breaks away and moves, usually though the blood,

to other parts of the body. There they divide and start tumors made of

malignant cells like the ones that made up the first tumor. When this

happens, it is called metastasis.

Skin cancer is the most prevalent of all cancers, and it’s increasingly

common. About a million Americans will develop skin cancer this year. It is a

disease in which cancer cells are found in the outer layers of skin. Skin

protects the body against heat, light, infection, and injury. It also stores

water, fat, and vitamin D.

The skin has two main layers and several kinds of cells. The top layer of

skin is called the epidermis. It contains three kinds of cells: flat, scaly

cells on the surface called squamous cells, round cells called basal cells,

and cells called melanocytes, which give skin its color.

The inner layer of skin is called the dermis. This layer is thicker, and

contains blood vessels, nerves, and sweat glands. The hair on skin also grows

from tiny pockets in the dermis, called follicles.