Sue Nicholls health: Star's 'dangerous' cancer spotted by viewer - 'ugly duckling' signs
Melanomas can present in many different shapes, sizes and colours. But no matter what the appearance of the melanoma, it is always important to detect it early so treatment can begin. Once melanoma has spread deeper into the skin or other parts of the body, it becomes more difficult to treat and can be deadly.
The Skin Cancer Foundation uses both the ABCDEs of melanoma and the Ugly Duckling method in order to teach individuals how to spot melanoma.
The first is a guide to help individuals recognise the warning signs of melanoma. It goes as follows:
- A is for Asymmetry. Most melanomas are asymmetrical. If you draw a line through the middle of the lesion, the two halves don’t match, so it looks different from a round to oval and symmetrical common mole.
- B is for Border. Melanoma borders tend to be uneven and may have scalloped or notched edges, while common moles tend to have smoother, more even borders.
- C is for Colour. Multiple colours are a warning sign. While benign moles are usually a single shade of brown, a melanoma may have different shades of brown, tan or black. As it grows, the colours red, white or blue may also appear.
- D is for Diameter or Dark. While it’s ideal to detect a melanoma when it is small, it’s a warning sign if a lesion is the size of a pencil eraser (about six millimetres or larger). Some experts say it is also important to look for any lesion, no matter what size, that is darker than others. Rare, amelanotic melanomas are colourless.
- E is for Evolving. Any change in size, shape, colour or elevation of a spot on your skin, or any new symptom in it, such as bleeding, itching or crusting, may be a warning sign of melanoma.
The second, is another recognition strategy that is based on the concept that most normal moles look like each other, with one standing out like an ugly duckling.
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