Melanoma Skin Cancer

There are many types of skin cancer but the three main types of skin cancer which are basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and melanoma. Even though there are three major types of skin cancer this essay will be focusing on Melanoma. Before I can discuss how Melanoma works we have to understand the anatomy of the Skin tissue. In the human body our skin is the protection between the external environment and internal organs. The human body skin can be different in the thickness of the skin. For example our face skin is thin compared to the skin in our back. There are two main types of skin layers which are epidermis and dermis. Epidermis and dermis lie on top of the third layer that is called Subcutis. Epidermis relies on dermis for its, nutrients, waste removals and has no blood vessels. The epidermis is thin and located in the outer layer. As mention before the skin can either be thin or thick. The epidermis thinness is in the eyelids, and it is thick in palms of the hands. Epidermis layer is made up of cells such as basal cells and squamous cells. Basal cells and squamous cells work together to constantly to rebuild the surface of the skin. Besides the Squamous cells and Basal cells the epidermis has two more types of specialized cell which are Langerhans cells and Merkel cells. The Langerhans cells are involved in the immune response and Merkel cells are involved in making the skin sensitive to touch. Next, is the skin layer dermis which is the second layer of the skin. The Dermis is beneath the Epidermis. Dermis is made up of papillary layer and reticular layer. A difference between the Epidermis and Dermis is that the Dermis is thicker than all three layers. Fibroblast produces Collagen and Elastin in the dermis so it can provide structure to the skin. There are several structures of the skin found in the dermis which are the blood vessels, hair follicles, lymph vessels, sebaceous glands, nerve endings and sweat glands that help regulate body temperature. The sebaceous glands are an oily substance that helps the skin from drying out. Both sweat and Sebaceous glands reach the skin surface through tiny openings of skin that act as pores. Beneath the Epidermis and dermis is the Subcutis. The Subcutis is also known as hypodermis. Subcutis is the innermost fatty layer of the skin that is closes to the muscles. The Subcutis is mainly made up of fat and adipose tissue. One of the functions of the Subcutis is that is an insulator to conserve the body’s heat. The second function is that is a shock absorber, protecting the inner organs. The last function is that it stores fat as an energy reserve for the body. The blood vessels, nerves, lymph vessels and hair follicles cross the Subcutis layer. Depending on the body of the person the thickness of the Subcutis varies. Since covering the two skin layers know we can move to the functions of the skin. The skin has many functions which include the protection of the body from the heat, sunlight, injury and infection. It also helps to regulate the body temperature. The regulation of the body temperature comes from the blood flow of the skin surface that allows the heat to escape into the air. Also sweating allows the body to regulate its temperature because sweating occurs until the …show more content…
If melanoma is allowed to grow it can spread to other parts of the body. If melanoma spreads to the body it can be deadly. Melanoma in the early stages may not cause any symptoms but you might feel itchy, bleed or feel pain. There is always the question of who gets melanoma? Anyone can melanoma but most people that get melanoma are light skin but other people that have brown or black skin also get melanoma. The people with higher risk of getting melanoma are people that have red or blond hair ,and blue or green eyes. Also people that are sensitive to sun light and have moles that are big or look unusual. Today melanoma is a common cancer among people that are 25-29 years old. Men older of 50 are at higher risk of developing skin cancer that is including