Where is the cancer ?

Appearance could be deceptive.

At a casual glance, the spot that attracts one’s attention would be the “funny” looking one at the left lower part of the shoulder; the one with different shades of brown and an irregular (i.e. not oval or round) shape. Indeed, a spot which has different shades of brown with an irregular outline must be checked by your Dr. to exclude the possibility of a melanoma. In this case, it turns out to be a seborrheic keratosis (aka. age spot, seborrheic wart). Some would call it a “senile wart” too but I am not that rude. (It is also not an accurate term as an “age spot” is often found in young adults too.)

The skin cancer in this photo is the light pink shiny lump near the centre of the picture. It is a basal cell carcinoma (BCC). BCC is the commonest skin cancer in human. It is indeed the commonest cancer regardless of organs. It is one of the so-called “sun cancers” in that cumulative sun exposure over the years is the single most important cause of BCC. More later…

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