Skin Cancer Flashcards
What are the three types of skin cancer?
Melanoma
Squamous cell carcinoma
Basal cell carcinoma
What are the keratinocyte skin cancers?
Squamous cell carcinoma
Basal cell carcinoma
where are keratinocytes?
in the epidermis
What layer of the epidermis does basal cell carcinoma arise?
the basal layer
What layer of the epidermis does squamous cell carcinoma arise?
the suprabasal layer
Where does melanoma arise from?
Melanocytes
Where are melanocytes?
Scattered along the basal layer
What percentage of cancers are non-melanoma skin cancers?
1/3
of non-melanoma skin cancers, how many are basal cell carcinomas?
3/4
of non-melanoma skin cancers, how many are squamous cell carcinomas?
1/4
What is the difference between basal cell carcinomas and squamous cell carcinomas?
Basal cell carcinomas cannot metastasis
What is squamous cell carcinoma associated with? Therefore who does it effect the most?
Cumulative UV-exposure
Elderly people
Who are at higher risk of developing squamous cell carcinoma?
Those who are immunosuppressed
What percentage of squamous cell carcinomas are linked to immunosuppression?
11%
What percentage of metastatic squamous cell carcinomas are linked to immunosuppression?
40%
What is the issue with UVA?
It is very prevalent
Longer wavelength and therefore penetrates deeper in the skin
Causes indirect DNA damage
What is the issue with UVB?
It causes direct DNA damage
1,000 times more damaging than UVA
How does UVB induce DNA damage?
It is incorportated into the DNA helix -> forms covalent linkages to form cycloburane pyramidine dimers (CPDs) and 6,4 photoproducts -> interferes with base pairs during DNA replication -> mutation
Which photoproduct is more common, CPD or 6,4 photoproduct?
CPDs
Which photoproduct is more mutagenc, CPD or 6,4 photoproduct?
6,4 photoproducts
What are sun sensitive people?
Burn easily
Tan poorly
What increased your risk of skin cancer?
Being sun sensitive Sun exposure Genetic Immunological factors Environmental carcinogens Age Photosensitising drugs Human papillomavirus
How can sun exposure increase your chance of developing skin cancer?
Dose and pattern
The latitude
If you burnt in childhood
Intensive intermittent exposure
How can genetics increase your chance of developing skin cancer?
Skin type
Albinism
Xeroderma pigmentosum
How can immunological factors increase your chance of developing skin cancer?
Immunosuppression
Malignancies
HIV
What environmental carcinogens increase your chance of developing skin cancer?
Ionising radiation
Arsenic
Trauma
What is xeroderma pigmentosum?
When you cannot repair the damage
why do sun sensitive people burn and not tan?
they produce pheomelanin instead of eumelanin
Pheomelanin absorbs UV less effectively
What do freckles mean?
You cannot tan