Skin Cancer Center

About a million people in the U.S. are diagnosed with skin cancer every year. Skin cancer is the most common type of cancer in the United States. According to current estimates, forty to fifty percent of Americans who live to age 65 will have skin cancer at least once. Although anyone can get skin cancer, the risk is if you have fair skin that freckles easily -- often with red or blond hair and blue or light-colored eyes.

The two most common kinds of skin cancer are basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma. (Carcinoma is cancer that begins in the cells that cover or line an organ.) Basal cell carcinoma accounts for more than ninety percent of all skin cancers in the United States. It is a slow-growing cancer that seldom spreads to other parts of the body. Squamous cell carcinoma also rarely spreads, but it does so more often than basal cell carcinoma. However, it is important that skin cancers be found and treated early because they can invade and destroy nearby tissue.

Basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma are sometimes called non-melanoma skin cancer. Another type of cancer that occurs in the skin is melanoma, which begins in the melanocytes.

Ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun is the main cause of skin cancer. Artificial sources of UV radiation, such as sunlamps and tanning booths, can also cause skin cancer.

The risk of developing skin cancer is affected by where you live. People who live in areas that get high levels of UV radiation from the sun are more likely to get skin cancer. In the United States, for example, skin cancer is more common in Texas than it is in Minnesota, where the sun is not as strong. Worldwide, the highest rates of skin cancer are found in South Africa and Australia, areas that receive high amounts of UV radiation.

In addition, skin cancer is related to lifetime exposure to UV radiation. Most skin cancers appear after age 50, but the sun's damaging effects begin at an early age. Therefore, protection should start in childhood, in order to prevent skin cancer later in life.

Whenever possible, people should avoid exposure to the midday sun (from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Standard Time, or from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Daylight Savings Time). Keep in mind that protective clothing, such as sun hats and long sleeves, can block out the sun's harmful rays. Also, lotions that contain sunscreen can protect the skin. Sunscreens are rated in strength according to a sun protection factor (SPF), which ranges from 2 to 30 or higher. Those rated 15 to 30 block most of the sun's harmful rays.

At Cancer Treatment Centers of America, we use many tools to help you fight skin cancer on all fronts. A powerful combination of traditional and new, innovative therapies are provided by cancer experts who work with you to determine the appropriate combination of therapies, which may include:

• Surgery is often used as a treatment for skin cancer. There are several types of surgery depending on the stage and location of cancer.

• Radiation Therapy is treatment with high-energy rays (such as x-rays) to kill or shrink cancer cells. The radiation may come from outside the body (external beam radiation) or from radioactive materials placed directly in the tumor (internal or implant radiation).

• Photodynamic Therapy is a two-step procedure that is done on an outpatient basis. You will be injected with a light-activated drug, which targets cancerous cells. Approximately 24-48 hours later, a laser light is directed through a scope onto tumor cells, exposing the cancerous tissue to a certain spectrum of light. The light "switches on" the drug, destroying the cancerous cells without damaging your surrounding healthy tissue.
• Topical Chemotherapy is when medication is placed directly onto the skin rather than being given by mouth or injected into a vein.

In addition the therapies described above, CTCA enriches your treatment by offering complementary and alternative therapies such as naturopathic medicine, nutritional therapy, mind-body medicine, image enhancement and spiritual support. CTCA is with you every step of the way in what truly is the fight of your life.