A dermatologist just diagnosed skin cancer on live TV
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“About one-fourth of my patients that present with their first BCC say that they were not aware of the lesion.” — Sean Christensen, MD, PhD, dermatologic surgeon at Yale Cancer Center and director of Yale Medicine’s Dermatologic Surgery Program
Mike Jerrick, co-host of “Good Day Philadelphia” on FOX29, was chatting with Joanna Walker, MD, a dermatologist at the University of Pennsylvania’s Tara Miller Melanoma Center, during a live TV segment when he learned something surprising about basal cell carcinoma (BCC): he had it. []
Dr. Walker was checking the skin on Jerrick’s arm when she found the cancerous spot. Jerrick thought it was simply a “big freckle.”
She told Jerrick that it had all the features of BCC—the most common type of skin cancer—but that it was very treatable and slow-growing, and that it doesn’t spread to other parts of the body. [] She said it would likely need to be cut off and stitched up.
What most patients don't know
Sean Christensen, MD, a dermatologic surgeon at Yale Cancer Center and the director of Yale Medicine’s Dermatologic Surgery Program, says there are about 4 million BCC cases every year in the United States—more than every other cancer combined.
Many patients are unfamiliar with BCC—physicians can remind them of the following signs or presentations:
A small bump on the skin that has a shiny or “pearly” texture. It may have a scab that never heals, and may also bleed a bit.
An apparent scratch or small wound on the skin that doesn’t heal after 1 or 2 months.
A spot with dark pigmentation or dark brown discoloration.
A seemingly normal mole or a scar or an area of eczema or dermatitis.
But BCC can be surprising, as viewers saw with Jerrick: “About one-fourth of my patients that present with their first BCC say that they were not aware of the lesion,” Dr. Christensen says.
Related: Dermatologist drops essential cancer tip just for womenBCC prognosis
Patients should know that the prognosis for BCC is excellent. Basal cell carcinoma almost never spreads to distant organs, Dr. Chu explains.
“When treated early, cure rates exceed 95%. Treatment options range from simple excision or curettage in the office to more advanced techniques like Mohs surgery for high-risk areas," Dr. Chu says. "Most patients go on to full recovery, with minimal scarring and an excellent long-term outlook.”
One instance in which BCC can present more serious issues is when it’s left untreated or found around the eye. If BCC is allowed to progress without treatment for a few years, it can become widely and deeply invasive Dr. Christensen explains.
“The most common location for BCC is on the face, and I have seen several patients with severe scarring and disfigurement from untreated growth of BCC," Dr. Christensen says. "When BCC develops around the eye, it can lead to scarring of the eyelids, loss of vision, and even destruction of the eye itself."
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