Melanoma Screening/Prevention
Information about the prevention of cancer and the science of screening appropriate individuals at high-risk of developing cancer is gaining interest. Physicians and individuals alike recognize that the best “treatment” of cancer is preventing its occurrence in the first place or detecting it early when it may be most treatable. Skin cancers, which include basal…
Treatment of Stage I-II Melanoma
Stage I-II Melanoma is treated with surgery and some individuals may benefit from adjuvant therapy.1,2,3,4 Surgical Treatment of Stage II Melanoma Treatment of stage I-II melanoma typically involves a single surgical procedure in which a local excision of the cancer is performed as well as a sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB). When melanoma spreads it…
Treatment of Stage III Melanoma
Standard surgical treatment for patients with stage III melanoma is removal of the primary cancer with up to 2-centimeter (over an inch) margins of the adjacent skin, depending on the thickness of the primary tumor, and removal of all of the regional lymph nodes. Outcomes of patients with stage III melanoma relate primarily to the…
Treatment of Stage IV – Metastatic Melanoma
Individuals with stage IV, or metastatic, melanoma have cancer that has spread from its site of origin to distant lymph nodes or other distant sites in the body, such as the liver, lungs, or brain. Significant advances in the treatment of advanced melanoma including the development of precision cancer medicines and immunotherapy have largely replaced…
Symptoms & Signs of Melanoma
The skin is the body’s largest organ and provides many key bodily functions. The skin protects against heat, sunlight, injury, and infection, helps control body temperature and stores water, fat, and vitamin D. The skin has two main layers are the upper or outer layer called the epidermis and lower or inner layer called the…