The very first caretaker job I took on was providing help to a Melanoma skin cancer patient. She was an Irish descendent woman in her mid-40's who I use to call "cannella". This is Spanish for cinnamon because her skin, her hair and her red freckles reminded me of it.
Although at times, I would take notice of her skin complexion, it never was much of a concern. She was very pale and the older the days got, not only did her skin get paler but it also start to get much more delicate to all light in general. This is one sign she says that begin to get her worried.
She found out she had melanoma shortly after she started noticing, what is called the melanoma staging, which is unusual lumps and blotches on her skin. Before going to seek treatment she would always say her skin condition would go away someday but it only worsen.
She was told she had Melanoma, stage II and that it was malignant. In the beginning, she was told she had squamous cell carcinoma, which is a nonmelanoma skin cancer.
Squamous is a form of skin cancer that resembles scales or a flat like thin scale on the skin usually found on the face area including the lips, ear and neck area.
Skin cancer falls into two groups; nonmelanoma and melanoma. Squamous skin cancer is considered nonmelanoma since it forms in cells that develop on sun exposed areas.
Melanoma is skin cancer that forms in the melanocytes, which is the cell that produces Melanin, the skin natural color pigment, usually a brown tint or darker.
The first signs of melanoma, early signs and symptoms of melanoma usually begin with moles. If you are noticing an increase in new moles or changes to your moles that you currently have on the body, these could be warning signs of melanoma.
Signs of nonmelanoma usually begin on your upper body, as I mentioned, your face, neck area, back or chest area. It should be noted that the most common locator of nonmelanoma, called Basal cell carcinoma, is on the nose.
It is reported that basal cell carcinoma is more common than squamous cell skin cancer.
Despite different location sites, shapes and colors the treatment for this cancers are usually followed by the same treatment.
In the case of my skin cancer patient, the lumps that she start to notice increased from 3 to 6 and was told it was spreading rapidly. Because of this reason, if you notice a change in the shape and size of a mole or the color of it, consulting your healthcare provider is crucial and could be life saving.
Caring for a Melanoma cancer patient requires a lot of care, love and patients. Learning of this skin cancer can help you become a better health care provider.
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