Cory KlingerKorey Kainec

Ian Behra

What is Melanoma??

Melanoma is a malignant tumor. If not found early, melanoma can ne very dangerous.

It is responsible for about 75% of deaths related to skin cancer

What it looks like…Melanoma can often times be confused with

regular skin moles. There is a helpful system that can be used to determine what exactly melanoma looks like.A- asymmetrical B- borders are unevenC- color; usually ranges in patchy areas.D- diameter; typically more than ¼ inchE- Evolve or enlarge

All of the above traits describe what melanoma looks like.

A picture…

Where does it come from?Melanoma come from melanocytes. These

are cells located in the skins epidermis. They produce melanin or a pigment.

Causes…Melanoma is caused by damage to the DNA.

When the DNA become damaged it causes the cell to grow into a tumor. DNA damage is most often caused by UV light from the sun.

Melanoma can be inherited from genetic mutation (any event causing change in genetic structure).

Melanoma builds up over a persons life and is usually caused by factors in the environment.

The Stages of MelanomaThe stages of melanoma with survival rate

(%)Stage 0: Clark Level (99.9%)Stage 1: Invasive Melanoma (85-99%)Stage 2: High Risk Melanoma(40-85%)Stage 3: Regional Metastasis (25-60%)Stage 4: Distant Metastasis (9-15%)

The Clark LevelLevel 1: Melanoma confined to EpidermisLevel 2: Invasion into the Papillary dermisLevel 3: Invasion into the junction of Reticular

dermisLevel 4: Invasion into reticular dermisLevel 5: Invasion into subcutaneous fat

The staging system used to recognize the invasion of melanoma into the skin

Do ya got it?Early signs: new lumps/moles, or changes in

shape/color of existing moles.Later signs: moles itch and/or bleedThe ABCDE Method is helpful in recognizing

early sings of melanoma. Other symptoms include: loss of appetite,

fatigue, nausea, and vomiting.

Treatments!!??Melanoma can be removed through several

surgeries or biopsies. Further surgery would need to be done in order to prevent recurrence. In Metastasis, the melanoma spreads to other parts of the body and is difficult to treat.

Melanoma can be cured during the early stages. Some other methods include Chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and radiation therapy.

Additional FactsThere are many forms of Melanoma. The most aggressive form of Melanoma is

Nodular Melanoma.Nodular Melanoma tends to grow rapidly and

is more thick. As opposed to most types of melanoma, nodular melanoma grows on areas of the skin that did not have pre-existing lesions.

Nodular Melanoma

Prevention and SupportThe best way to prevent from melanoma is to

avoid exposure to UV radiation. Sunscreen is recommended for long exposures to the sun. Avoid Tanning Beds!!!!

There are several support groups for melanoma. Two of the largest being the American Melanoma Foundation, and the Skin Cancer Community.

http://www.melanomafoundation.org/AMF/patient.htm

http://exchanges.webmd.com/melanoma-and-skin-cancer-exchange

Resourceshttp://www.melanoma.com/whatis.htmlhttp://www.susanfazio.org/

mucosalmelanoma.htmlhttp://www.malignant-melanoma.org/

surgery/lymph-node-dissection-surgery/http://skincancer.about.com/od/diagnosis/a/

staging.htmhttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/

PMC1397358/