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Research Paper On Skin Cancer

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Research Paper On Skin Cancer
Cancer is a scary thing. With cancer being the number two killer in the United States, most-likely we all know someone who is fight or has fought the frightening battle with cancer. There are over 100 types of known cancer, and though there are many successful treatments, there is no cure for this deadly disease. Some of the most common cancers include; breast, pancreatic, colon, leukemia, skin, and plenty more. Skin cancer is a cancer that could easily be detected soon, with check-ups and self-examinations, but unfortunately is missed often. Skin cancer has three different branches that include, basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, and malignant melanoma. When a person is young normal body cells grow and divide quickly, but as …show more content…
The risk of melanoma in a white person is ten times as high as it is for a black person. White men and women have a 1 in 50 chance of being diagnosed, while a black man or woman have a 1 in 1,000 chance, and Hispanics have a 1 in 200 chance. Melanoma, unlike the other skin cancers, has no age discrimination. It has been seen in people younger than 30 years of age, but it does increase with age. There are many different risk factors for melanoma, which is why it has no age discrimination. Though a person has many risk factors, does not mean that they will end up getting cancer, and vise-versa, if a person has little or no risk factors, that does not mean that they will never be diagnosed. Risk factors for melanoma include; sun exposure, moles, fair skin, freckles, light hair color, a family history of melanoma, a personal history with melanoma, immune suppression, age, gender, and Xeroderma Pigmentosum …show more content…
The UV radiation can damage genes making the risk higher for a melanoma. Tanning beds are also a source that gives off a considerable amount of UV radiation. UV is divided into three categories, which include, UVA rays, which are linked to skin damage, wrinkles, and skin cancers. UVB rays, the second UV is known to cause sunburns and skin cancer. Finally, there is the UVC rays, which do not penetrate the earth’s atmosphere, and are not a risk factor for skin cancer. Skin cancer appears when the UV radiation damages the DNA making it unable to control skin cell

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