Check Your Skin
- Real Housewife Tamra Judge, 53, was diagnosed with melanoma after discovering a cancerous mole on her butt.
- Melanoma isn’t just limited to skin. Uveal melanoma is a disease that forms in the tissue of the eye and is not caused by UV rays.
- It’s important to check every part of your skin and look for suspicious moles and blemishes.
While filming RHOC, Judge, 53, decided to take some time for herself and have a massage in her dressing room. During the session, her masseuse pointed out a black spot on the side of her butt, and told her she should visit a dermatologist to have it examined. A few moths later, Judge did exactly that. The dermatologist took a biopsy of the spot and a few weeks later informed Judge she had stage 1 melanoma an aggressive form of skin cancer. The physician informed her that the disease was extremely treatable, and in the end Judge learned an important lesson about always paying attention to every part of her body.
Read MoreMelanoma Isn’t Only About Skin
When we think of skin cancer, we immediately, and understandably, assume it’s only a disease that affects our skin. However, it turns out that’s not the case. Uveal melanoma is a disease that forms in the tissue of the eye, and unlike melanoma of the skin, it’s not caused by UV rays. In fact, researchers are still trying to find out what causes uveal melanoma.
Since a cause of this disease has yet to be determined, it’s even more important that everyone get their eyes regularly checked. “Everyone should get dilated every year,” Dr. Sapna Patel, a melanoma oncologist at MD Anderson Cancer Center, tells SurvivorNet. “Even if you don't need corrective lenses or glasses, contact lenses … it's still important to have your eyes dilated and examined for physical changes such as melanoma or moles in the eye."
There are factors that put certain groups of people at risk. According to Dr. Patel, Uveal melanoma is found in caucasians with hazel, green, or blue eyes more than people with brown eyes. However, no matter your eye color, it’s still important to be proactive and get yourself checked regularly.
Dr. Sapna Patel defines uveal melanoma, a skin cancer of the eye
Tips For Checking Your Skin
There’s a few things to remember when trying to prevent skin cancer. One, it’s still important to protect your skin during the winter months, and two, suspicious moles can present themselves in unassuming areas. By finding caner in the earlier stages, it’s usually very treatable through surgery. This means checking your body for spots and blemishes thoroughly can be the difference between an early stage version of the disease or a late stage.
When checking your skin, use the ABCDE method:
- Asymmetrical moles: see if the sides of the mole match each other.
- Borders: examine if the edges of the mole are jagged or irregular.
- Colors: does the mole display different tones of color?
- Diameter: check if the mole is larger than 6mm (roughly the size of a pencil head eraser)
- Evolution: the most important part of the process. Pay attention to if the mole changes over time; in color, size, or starts to feel painful or itchy.
Dr. Cecilia Larocca shares tips on how to check your skin
Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.