This week in my general dermatology practice I saw a woman in her mid 40's that had a skin cancer on her cheek. We removed it and she will do well. The interesting point;however, is that the area had been present  for 8 years.  It had been bleeding and growing for  several years.  Because of the delay in getting it evaluated, it had grown to a significant  size and was much more complicated to remove and repair .  It this would have been seen years before it would have been a much simpler and easier treatment for this patient.

If you have an area  on your skin that is changing and /or won't heal, I urge you to get it evaluated.  Skin cancers generally are very treatable and curable;however, the earlier they are diagnosed and treated the better. Even better- if you have had alot of sun ,get a baseline skin exam.  There are many things now that can be done to help photodamaged skin and reduce your risk of skin cancers.