Skin Cancer Medical Animation Summary

The video “Skin Cancer Medical Animation” is about the integumentary system (skin) and how skin cancer is developed. Compared to majority of the organ systems, the integumentary system is one of the largest organ systems that play an important role in protection and maintenance of body temperature and fluids (Cancer Treatment Center of America, 2007). According to the video, the skin is composed of three layers with each layer having different types of cells. The first layer is the Epidermis which is composed of basal, squamous, and melanocytes cells, its function is to shield and defend the internal layers of tissues and organs from having too much contact to UV sunlight. The second layer is the dermis and it is composed of “blood vessels, connective tissue, hair follicles, and sweat glands” and the
The damage of the skin cell is caused by exposed to a lot of sunlight or from past sunburns. In the video, the narrator talks about the three most known skin cancers and how they are differentiated by the cell type, which are Basal Cell Carcinoma, Squamous Cell Carcinomas, and Malignant Melanomas (Cancer Treatment Center of America, 2007). The Basal Cell Carcinoma is frequently originated in people whose skin is mostly visible to the sun or on the surface of the skin, and it affects that area only and does not spread into the other parts of the skin. The Squamous cell carcinomas on the other hand originates in the deeper layer of the epidermis and compared to the Basal Cell Carcinoma it doesn’t only effect one part of the skin, it spreads all over the body and is a lot more difficult to cure. The Malignant Melanomas is one of the most harmful types of skin cancer that spreads throughout the entire body and affects the organs. This type of skin cancer mostly develops in people who have lighter skin color and lack melanin pigments (Cancer Treatment Center of America,