Amelanotic melanoma
Encyclopedia
Amelanotic melanoma is a type of skin cancer
in which the cells do not make melanin
.
appearance: they can be pink,red,purple or of normal skin
color, hence difficult to recognise
prognosis: their atypical appearance leads to delay in diagnosis
,so worse prognosis
Skin cancer
Skin neoplasms are skin growths with differing causes and varying degrees of malignancy. The three most common malignant skin cancers are basal cell cancer, squamous cell cancer, and melanoma, each of which is named after the type of skin cell from which it arises...
in which the cells do not make melanin
Melanin
Melanin is a pigment that is ubiquitous in nature, being found in most organisms . In animals melanin pigments are derivatives of the amino acid tyrosine. The most common form of biological melanin is eumelanin, a brown-black polymer of dihydroxyindole carboxylic acids, and their reduced forms...
.
appearance: they can be pink,red,purple or of normal skin
Skin
-Dermis:The dermis is the layer of skin beneath the epidermis that consists of connective tissue and cushions the body from stress and strain. The dermis is tightly connected to the epidermis by a basement membrane. It also harbors many Mechanoreceptors that provide the sense of touch and heat...
color, hence difficult to recognise
prognosis: their atypical appearance leads to delay in diagnosis
Diagnosis
Diagnosis is the identification of the nature and cause of anything. Diagnosis is used in many different disciplines with variations in the use of logics, analytics, and experience to determine the cause and effect relationships...
,so worse prognosis
Prognosis
Prognosis is a medical term to describe the likely outcome of an illness.When applied to large statistical populations, prognostic estimates can be very accurate: for example the statement "45% of patients with severe septic shock will die within 28 days" can be made with some confidence, because...
External links
- Amelanotic melanoma entry in the public domain NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms