Q I am a 69 year old man having skin cancer can it be deadly?
There are three types of skin cancer. Basal Cell Carcinoma(BCC), Squamous Cell Carcinoma (SCC) , and Malignant Melanoma. BCC and SCC are usually not fatal unless they have metastasized (spread to other parts of the body). Melanoma is responsible for 75% of deaths due to skin cancer, but if it is caught early it can be easily cured with a minor surgery.nBCC is usually caused by a combination of cumulative UV exposure and intense, occasional UV exposure, the kind you might experience on sunny vacations. BCCs sometimes resemble non cancerous skin conditions such as psoriasis or eczema. Warning signs include an open sore, a reddish patch or irritated area, a shiny bump or nodule, a pink growth, and a scar-like areas SCC is mainly caused by cumulative UV exposure over the course of a lifetime. SCCs are most common in areas frequently exposed to the sun, such as the rim of the ear, lower lip, face, bald scalp, neck, hands, arms and legs. Warning signs include a scaly red patch, an elevated growth, an open sore, or a wart-like growth, and these lesions may sometimes bleed.