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Symptoms
By Mayo Clinic staff
Basal cell carcinomas usually develop on sun-exposed parts of your body, especially your head and neck. A much smaller number occur on the trunk and legs. Yet basal cell carcinomas can also occur on parts of your body that rarely see the light of day.
Although a general warning sign of skin cancer is a sore that won't heal or that repeatedly bleeds and scabs over, basal cell tumors are likely to take one of these forms:
- A pearly white or waxy bump, often with visible blood vessels on your face, ears or neck. The bump may bleed, develop a crust or form a depression in the center. In darker skinned people, this type of tumor is usually brown or black.
- A flat, scaly, brown or flesh-colored patch on your back or chest. Over time, these patches can grow quite large — up to about 4 to 6 inches (about 10 to 15 centimeters).
- More rarely, a white, waxy scar. This type of basal cell carcinoma is easy to overlook, but it may be a sign of a particularly invasive and disfiguring cancer called morpheaform basal cell carcinoma.
When to see a doctor
Some basal cell carcinomas may be difficult to distinguish from ordinary sores. Yet the sooner they're diagnosed and treated, the better the outcome. See your dermatologist if you have:
- A skin sore that bleeds easily or doesn't heal in about two weeks
- A sore that repeatedly crusts or oozes
- Visible blood vessels in or around a sore
- A scar in an area where you haven't injured yourself
- Wood GS, et al. Nonmelanoma skin cancers: Basal cell and squamous cell carcinomas. In: Abeloff MD, et al. Abeloff's Clinical Oncology. 4th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Churchill Livingstone; 2008. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/119479231-3/0/1709/83.html?tocnode=55017273&fromURL=83.html#4-u1.0-B978-0-443-06694-8..50078-6--cesec29_2759. Accessed Feb. 6, 2009.
- Basal cell carcinoma. American Academy of Dermatology. http://www.aad.org/public/publications/pamphlets/sun_basal.html. Accessed Feb. 6, 2009.
- Detailed guide: Skin cancer - basal and squamous cell. American Cancer Society. http://www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/content/CRI_2_4_1X_What_is_skin_cancer_51.asp. Accessed Feb. 6, 2009.
- Urist MM, et al. Melanoma and cutaneous malignancies. In: Townsend CM, et al. Townsend: Sabiston Textbook of Surgery. 18th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: W.B. Saunders; 2007.http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/119479231-5/0/1565/1.html?tocnode=54736195&fromURL=1.html#4-u1.0-B978-1-4160-3675-3..X5001-1--TOP_1. Accessed Feb. 6, 2009.
- Burns J. Bartter's syndrome and basal cell carcinoma. In: Ferri FF. Ferri's Clinical Advisor 2009. St. Louis, Mo.: Mosby; 2008. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/119515236-9/801847095/1701/79.html#4-u1.0-B978-0-323-04134-8..50005-7--cesec92_1598. Accessed Feb. 9, 2009.
- Sunscreen. The Skin Cancer Foundation. http://www.skincancer.org/the-scfs-guide-to-sunscreens.html. Accessed Feb. 6, 2009.
- Basal cell carcinoma of the skin. National Cancer Institute. http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/pdq/treatment/skin/HealthProfessional/page5. Accessed Feb. 6, 2009.
- Ridky TW. Nonmelanoma skin cancer. Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology. 2007;57:484.
- Neoplasia. In: Kumar V, et al. Robbins and Cotran's Pathologic Basis of Disease. 7th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2005. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/119515236-4/801835407/1249/66.html#4-u1.0-B0-7216-0187-1..50011-0--cesec92_600. Accessed Feb. 6, 2009.
- Arsenic toxicity exposure pathways. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/csem/arsenic/exposure_pathways.html. Accessed Feb. 6, 2009.
- Common questions about diet and cancer. American Cancer Society. http://www.cancer.org/docroot/PED/content/PED_3_2X_Common_Questions_About_Diet_and_Cancer.asp?sitearea=PED. Accessed Feb. 6, 2009.
- Food Groups to Encourage. In: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and U.S. Department of Agriculture. Dietary Guidelines for Americans. 6th Edition. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office; 2005. http://www.health.gov/DietaryGuidelines/dga2005/document/html/chapter5.htm. Accessed Feb 6, 2009.
- Premalignant and malignant nonmelanoma skin tumors. In: Habif TP. Clinical Dermatology: A Color Guide to Diagnosis and Therapy. 4th ed. New York, N.Y.: Mosby; 2004. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/119515236-5/0/1195/157.html?tocnode=51442435&fromURL=157.html#4-u1.0-B0-323-01319-8..50023-6_2588. Accessed Feb. 6, 2009.
