Skin cancer is one of the most common cancers in the world and if it's caught early it can be easily treated. However, skin cancers can look very different and the symptoms can vary, or be similar to other conditions.
Common symptoms of skin cancer include a sore or area of skin that doesn't heal within four weeks, looks unusual or hurts, is itchy, bleeds, crusts or scabs for more than four weeks. Speak to your GP if you have any of these symptoms or are worried about any abnormal areas of skin.
Non-melanoma skin cancers, the most common, tend to develop most often on skin that's exposed to the sun. Here we have teamed up with Cancer Research UK to offer a comprehensive guide to what to look out for.
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Looking for signs of skin cancer
Non-melanoma skin cancers tend to develop most often on skin that's exposed to the sun. To spot skin cancers early it helps to know how your skin normally looks. That way, you'll notice any changes more easily.
To look at areas you can’t see easily, you could try using a hand held mirror and reflect your skin onto another mirror. Or you could get your partner or a friend to look. This is very important if you're regularly outside in the sun for work or leisure.
You can take a photo of anything that doesn't look quite right. If you can it's a good idea to put a ruler or tape measure next to the abnormal area when you take the photo. This gives you a more accurate idea about its size and can help you tell if it's changing. You can then show these pictures to your doctor.
There are different types of basal cell skin cancers. These include:
- nodular basal cell skin cancer
- pigmented basal cell skin cancer
- morphoeic basal cell skin cancer - also known as sclerosing or infiltrating basal cell skin cancer
- superficial basal cell skin cancer
Nodular basal cell cancer
Nodular basal cell cancers can look see through (translucent) and shiny. You can often also see their blood vessels. Sometimes they have a sore (ulcerated) area and it may also have fluid filled sacs (cystic).
Pigmented basal cell cancer
Pigmented basal cell cancers have dark areas, often brown, blue or grey in colour. They can look like warts or sometimes a melanoma.
Morphoeic basal cell cancer
Pronounced mor-fee-ic, this type of basal cell skin cancer may look like a sore area on the skin that doesn’t heal. It might look skin coloured, waxy, like a scar or thickened area of skin that's very slowly getting bigger. You might also see small blood vessels.
Squamous cell skin cancers
Squamous cell skin cancers can vary in how they look. They usually occur on areas of skin exposed to the sun like the scalp or ear.
When to see your doctor
You should see your doctor if you have:
- a spot or sore that doesn't heal within four weeks
- a spot or sore that hurts, is itchy, crusty, scabs over, or bleeds for more than four weeks
- areas where the skin has broken down (an ulcer) and doesn't heal within four weeks, and you can't think of a reason for this change.
