Key Features

100 Questions & Answers About Melanoma and Other Skin Cancers
Edward F. McClay, MD, San Diego Melanoma Research Center, Mary-Eileen T. McClay, Jodie Smith

  ▪ Concise, easy-to-read paperback book.
  ▪ The question and answer format mimics an actual physician consultation.
  ▪ Provides both the patient’s and physician’s perspective on melanoma and other skin cancers.
  ▪ Written by an expert author team with extensive experience.
  ▪ Provides practical answers to questions about treatment options, post-treatment quality of life, sources of
    support, and much more.

Table of Contents

Part 1: The Basics
Questions 1-6 give basic background information about the skin, including:
  ▪ What is skin?
  ▪ What is cancer?
  ▪ What are the different kinds of skin cancer?

Part 2: Risk Factors
Questions 7-16 describe the different risk factors for skin cancer, including personal and environmental factors:
  ▪ Who is at risk for developing skin cancer?
  ▪ What environmental factors are important?
  ▪ What is ultraviolet radiation? What is meant by UVA, UVB, and UVC?

Part 3: Prevention and Protection
Questions 17-31 discuss ways to prevent skin cancer, including:
  ▪ What can I do to protect myself from UV damage?
  ▪ What is a sunscreen? What is the difference between a sunscreen and a sunblock?
  ▪ Do I need to use sunscreen on cloudy days?

Part 4: Detecting and Diagnosing Skin Cancer
Questions 32-38 describe the warning signs of skin cancer and what steps you might take if you think you see them, such as:
  ▪ How is skin cancer diagnosed?
  ▪ What should I look for to determine whether a mole could be melanoma?
  ▪ How is a biopsy done?

Part 5: What Does It Mean to Have Melanoma?
Questions 39-44 discuss some of the general facts you need to know regarding a diagnosis of melanoma:
  ▪ Are there different kinds of melanoma?
  ▪ Why is malignant melanoma so dangerous?
  ▪ How do I cope with knowing I have this disease?

Part 6. Treatment of Malignant Melanoma
Questions 45-64 describe soem of the methods fro treating malignant melanoma, including:
  ▪ What are the prognostic factors I need to know about?
  ▪ I have been told that I need a sentinel lymph node biopsy. What is this for?
  ▪ What questions should I ask my oncologist?
  ▪ What are the symptoms of metastatic melanoma?
  ▪ What are the common side effects of treatment?

Part 7. Clinical Trials
Questions 65-71 outline the advantages and disadvantages of participating in clinical trials, including:
  ▪ How do I find out about clinical trials?
  ▪ Does treatment in a clinical trial cost me money?
  ▪ Who is eligible for treatment in a clinical trial?

Part 8. Non-Melanoma Skin Cancers
Questions 72-100 discuss skin cancers and conditions other than melanoma, including:
  ▪ What is an actinic keratosis?
  ▪ What is basal cell carcinoma? What does it look like?
  ▪ Do basal cell carcinomas metastasize?
  ▪ What is a squamous cell carcinoma?
  ▪ What is a Merkel cell cancer?
  ▪ What is Kaposi’s sarcoma?
  ▪ What is a lymphoma?
  ▪ Do cancers originating elsewhere ever show up in the skin?
  ▪ Where do I go for more information about skin cancer?

Appendix
A list of web sites, organizations, and literature to help melanoma patients and their families find additional resources on general and specific topics related to melanoma and other skin cancers.

Glossary
Index