The ABCDEs of Skin Cancer: Understanding the Signs and Symptoms

When it comes to your skin, it’s important that you’re taking precautions to keep it safe, healthy, and protected from issues like skin cancer. With skin cancer, the most important thing that you can do is detect any signs as early as possible. The earlier skin cancer is caught, the easier it usually is to treat. You may not be able to remember what to look for with skin cancer, so it’s important to just remember your ABCDEs of melanoma.

The ABCDEs of Skin Cancer

When you’re looking to identify signs of skin cancer, it may be overwhelming to remember what all the signs could be. You just have to remember your ABCDEs and checking your skin will be an easy process. This means looking for:

Asymmetry - Often, melanoma starts in moles. Melanoma can make a mole into a strange shape that isn’t symmetrical. Non-cancerous moles tend to be uniform and have an even shape all around.

Border - With melanoma, the borders on a mole are no longer well defined or they are an irregular shape.

Color - If you notice that your mole has changed colors or has several shades, you should be checking it out. Moles are typically brown in color.

Diameter - A mole should not be larger than 6mm in diameter. For reference, that’s the size of a standard pencil. If a mole is larger than that, you should see your dermatologist as soon as possible.

Evolution - Moles don’t tend to change over time. If you notice that any of the above changes occur and a mole completely changes appearance, you should not hesitate to visit your dermatologist for care as soon as possible.

Contact Your Dermatologist Today

Make sure that you know your ABCDEs. Contact your dermatologist to learn more about the signs of melanoma and when you should visit your dermatologist for a checkup.