Melanoma Project Report

Many people think that is it possible to achieve a “healthy tan,” but this thought has been proven wrong. Overexpose to UV-A and UV-B rays from the sun lead to premature aging of the skin, as well as the possible formation of skin cancer, know as melanoma. An appearance of a tan is actually a stage of burning and damage to the skin. Although a tan may be desirable to many, the fact remains that more people need to be educated on the dangers of the sun’s harmful rays, and the possible health complications of overexposure.

I read the article “Kids want to tan” and I can express my reaction using this thesis: “The danger of getting too much tan”. The main ideas that I can find in this article are three: the sun-obsession, the skin cancer, and the percentage and incidence of skin cancer. I’m going to give a summary of this article and I’m going to explain the main ideas adding details related to my knowledge and my experience.

The largest organ of the human body is your skin. It is your body’s first line of defense against infections, injuries, heat, and sunlight. It also helps in controlling the temperature of your body and getting rid of the excess water and salt by sweating it out. Skin cancer is also known as cancer of the sun. Excessive amounts of ultra violet lights affect your skin in negative ways, possibly leading to Melanoma skin cancer. Melanoma is the most serious type of skin cancer there is and can often times be fatal (McClay).

These brown coloured cancerous growths develop when unrepaired DNA has committed damage to the body’s skin cells. It is known that it is the most commonly triggered by vigorous amounts of sunshine, over excessive use of tanning bed and UV lights which result in making mutations in the skin that produces the skin cells to over multiply at a quick rate which can eventually form nasty tumours.

The Integumentary system is defined as “an organ system consisting in the skin, hair, nails, and exocrine glands” (Integumentary System, 1999). This systems main purpose is to protect the body from the environment around it. The skin covers and protects tissues, nerves, veins, and muscles of the body. The hair and nails give extra strength in reinforcing the skin while keeping the body warm and protecting the skin from harmful UV rays. The exocrine glands of the skin include the sudoriferous glands, sebaceous glands, and the ceruminous glands. Each exocrine gland has a different function as well as location in the skin. The following text will explain the effects of melanoma on the integumentary system.

Although there are several types of skin cancer, the most aggressive form is melanoma. This cancer of the skin involves mass replication of the pigment producing melanocyte cells, which are located in the epidermis, below the basal layer. There are several factors involved with the onset of melanoma including, exposure to ultraviolet rays, genetic predisposition, numerous nevi (moles), immunosuppression, and environmental exposure to carcinogens.

Melanoma is a dangerous invasive cancer which starts in melanin producing cells (melanocytes) usually located at the bottom of the skins epidermal layer. Although certain individuals have a genetic propensity for melanoma, it is usually triggered by excessive UV exposure from sunlight or tanning beds (Mayo Clinic, 2016a). At early stages it is relatively easy to treat, however, recurrences are common. At later stages melanoma treatments are less effective since it tends to metastasize and spread easily through the lymphatic system (Mayo Clinic, 2016a).. The root cause of malignant melanoma is due to mutations in the p53 gene protein which invariably leads to further mutations.

Imagine going to a tanning salon and asking information on the safety of indoor tanning. The employees tell you that it is safe, in fact, they encourage the use, saying it is good for you. Imagine six months later going to your doctor for a checkup and having your doctor tell you he is concerned about something you thought was a beauty mark. You come to find that you have malignant melanoma, a deadly form of skin cancer at the age of 27. After doing some research it was obvious that going to this tanning salon was the cause. You have just taken a glimpse into the life of Lisa Whitehead who shared her story to prevent something like this from happening to others. This essay will analyze issues related to Indoor Tanning. It will employ the

Kristen, I found your posting very informative especially regarding the risk factors of the Hispanic community. One small observation that I noted is that there is no explanation as to what the MRAT acronym stands far. The Melanoma Risk Assessment Tool (MRAT) unfortunately is very limited in its usage because it is useful for non-Hispanic whites only missing a significant portion of our population.

There are three primary layers of the skin: the outer layer, the epidermis and the layer beneath, the dermis and the hypodermis. The epidermis is thin, tough and waterproof while protecting the body from outside bacteria invading the body. It also contains keratinocytes which are from the basal layer which is the deepest layer of the skin. The keratinocytes reach up to the epidermis, shed and new ones form again. The dermis is the second layer of the skin and is the thickest. It is made from fibrous and elastic tissues which are made from fibrillin, elastin and collagen to create the strength and flexibility. It also contains sweat and oil glands, nerve endings, blood vessels and hair follicles. Sweat glands help the body cool off during heat

Those who have light skin, hair, and/or eye colors are at an increased risk for developing melanoma over their opposite counterparts. Risks escalate for those who are sensitive to the sun and develop sunburn easily, have a history of intense sunburns, or never tan. A family history of melanoma is another risk factor associated with developing the disease. Persons with a personal history of melanoma are at a greater risk of recurrence. Significant numbers of freckling and moles in an individual is an additional risk factor in developing melanoma. Controllable risk factors include the use of ultraviolet radiation tanning beds, and the time one spends in the sun under natural ultraviolet radiation (Calianno, 2011). Sunburns in later life and cumulative lifetime exposure to ultraviolet radiation are important factors in the development of melanoma, but blistering sunburns in early childhood markedly increase a person’s risk

Vitiligo is a skin pigmentation disorder. This disorder can be recognized by the presence of the patches and macules that are depigmented. For instance, someone with darker skin will have white patches among their body, as well as some white hair. Melanoma Associated Hypopigmentation is also a depigmentation of the skin, but it can be associated with immunotherapeutic agent treatments. Vitiligo and Melanoma Associated Hypopigmentation are both leukodermas. They also seem to link to MM which is Malignant Melanoma.

Melanoma is cancer that begins in the melanocytes. Other names for this cancer include malignant melanoma and cutaneous melanoma. Most melanoma cells still make melanin, so melanoma tumors are usually brown or black. But some melanomas do not make melanin and can appear pink, tan, or even white. This type of cancer can develop anywhere on the skin, but they are more likely to start on the chest/back in men and on the legs in women. The first sign is the appearance of a flat or slightly raised discolored patch that has irregular borders and is somewhat asymmetrical in form. The color varies, and you may see areas of tan, brown, black, red, blue or white.

Melanoma is a malignant tumor that arises from pigment-producing skin cells termed melanocytes. When the cell division of these melanocytes becomes unregulated, they begin to divide and multiply too rapidly. This results in a cancerous overgrowth of these pigmented cells. Melanomas most frequently begin as a benign mole or freckle, which subsequently grow and transform into cancerous lesions. The most lethal type of skin cancer, melanoma is often a direct result of exposure to ultraviolet radiation from the sun (Ignatavicius, 2016).

Every hour at least one American will die of skin cancer caused by exposure to the sun. These statistics are alarming and most people are unaware that the sunshine that we all love so much is in fact a threat to our health and good looks. It is up to us to educate ourselves and our children on the harmful effects of sun exposure on the human body like premature aging, physical damage to the body, and cancerous diseases.