How do i know i have melanoma?

ABCD's: Remember your abcd's when thinking of melanoma. Look for moles with asymmetry boarders that are irregular color differences within the same mole diameter greater than 6mm also any new mole or old that starts to itch, bleed or ulcerate should be of concern. Another rule is the ugly duckling rule. Which refers to a mole that looks distantly different from the others on your body.

Get checked!: Any suspicious lesion should be evaluated by a plastic surgeon or a dermatologist. A biopsy will give you a definitive answer regarding if it is a skin cancer, a pre-malignant lesion, or a benign lesion.

Melanoma: Melanomas are dark, have irregular borders, larger than a pencil eraser and can have several shades of brown.

Melanoma : Typically a biopsy establishes a diagnoses of a cancer. Melanoma treatment is based on thickness. It can be as simple as excision with a margin versus removal and a sentinel lymph node biopsy.

ABCDE: Always have a dermatologist or plastic surgeon examine any skin lesion which you have concerns about, is growing or changing. The following abcde rule of melanoma helps classify suspicious skin lesions. Asymmetry borders (irregular) color (variegated) diameter (greater than 6 mm (0.24 in), about the size of a pencil eraser) evolving over time.