Although I have diagnosed and treated literally thousands of skin cancers over the years,in my
experience it has been unusual for the great majority of patients with these to complain of
symptoms such as itching or burning or pain associated with them.
In fact ,many of the most serious skin cancers I found were in patients totally unaware of their
presence. In particular, I remember one elderly lady whose malignant melanoma I saw through the thin
blouse she was wearing on a hot summer day as she was going through my office door to leave.
With that in mind I find it very interesting that a recent study showed that more than one-third
of cancerous skin lesions itch-especially basal cell carcinomas. In addition,the study also indicated that
about 30 % are painful-especially squamous cell carcinomas.
To me,the bottom line as already stated in my above blogs is to report not only a change in
the size,color or shape of your skin lesions but also any skin symptoms such as burning,itching,tender ness
or pain to your healthcare practitioner.
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