SKIN DISORDERS

Skin disorders: Vitaligo and Skin cancer

Description of characteristics

            Vitiligo is a skin condition that destroys the skin pigments causing white patches. The failure of melanocytes to properly function or if they destroy the pigmentation cells making the body not to produce melanin making the skin lose its color. Such an anomaly does not take place overnight, and neither does it happen throughout the body. Vitiligo can take place in three different ways. First, it can be segmental where one side of the body loses color. It can also be local with a limited loss of color. It can also be generalized showing widespread symptom in all parts of the body (Fact Sheet, 2015).

            Usually, the discoloration mainly appears in the sun-exposed areas such as lips, face, arms, hands and feet. Vitiligo can affect the eye and the mucous membranes of the tissues inside the nose and mouth. The main cause of Vitiligo is unknown, but it is considered the autoimmune disease. It is a condition happening when the immune system wrongly attacks as specific part of the body leading to the destruction of the skin’s melanocytes. Genes can also make a person more prone to the disorder. Other researchers think that the melanocytes do destroy themselves while others consider the single event factors such as emotional distress and sunburn to be the causes of vitiligo, However, there is no proving to these factors. Many people develop vitiligo during their twenties, but it can happen at any stage of life. The disorder affects both sexes, and all races but more noticeable to individuals with darker skin. Also, individuals suffering from other autoimmune diseases are most likely to suffer from vitiligo than those who do not have the autoimmune diseases (Fact Sheet, 2015).

 Melanoma Skin cancer

 The skin cancer'ssigmnificant cause is the sun’s ultraviolet (UV) radiation or the tanning booths. Skin cancer leads to uncontrolled growth of cancerous cells on the skin that appears in the form of waxy pink bumps, moles or lesions.

Melanoma skin cancer starts when the cells of the body begin to grow out of control. Cells in almost every part of the body turn to be cancer and its spreads to other parts of the body the various types of noncancerous/ benign tumors develop from various types of the skin cells. A nevus or mole is a benign skin tumor developing from the melanocytes. Almost all people have some mole, but they are harmless, but having a specific type of mole raises the melanoma risk. The Spitz nevus is a type of mole that looks like the melanoma. It is common in teens and children but also found in adults. The tumors usually do not spread and are benign (Seidel, et al, 2011).

 The benign tumors developing from other skin cells types are the;

•    Hammangiomas that are known as the strawberry spots causing growths of the benign blood vessels.

•    Seborrhea Kerasotes: raised pots having a waxy texture that are black, brown or tan in color

•    Warts: growths with rough surfaces caused by a type of the human papillomavirus (HPV)

•     The lipomas have soft and spongy growth from fat cells

The Melanoma cancer starts from the melanocytes. The melanomas do not have melanin making the skin appear white, tan or pink. The risk factors for melanoma skin cancer include lifestyles such as smoking and excessive exposure to the sun. Others are family history and age (American Cancer Society, 2015).

Correct diagnosis

Vitiligo is easy to diagnose when the doctor uses medical and family history, tests and physical examinations. Doctor will ask questions like if there is a family member who suffers from vitiligo or if they have an autoimmune disease. Also, the doctor will want to know of the patient had sunburn, rash, and other skin problem conditions. Others are sensitivity to sun, presence of gray hair before age 35 and any physical illness or stress. The test includes a blood test, eye exam and small biopsy sample on the affected part of the skin for examination. Doctors find it difficult to diagnose the Spitz nevi from the actual melanoma even when examining them under the microscope. Thus, to be safe the nevus have to be removed (Ball, et al, 2015).

References

 Seidel, H.., Ball, J., & Stewart, R. W. (2011). Adult examination checklist: Guide for skin, hair, and nails. In Mosby's guide to physical examination (7th ed.). St. Louis, MO: Elsevier Mosby.

Ball, J.., Dains, E., Flynn, J. A., Solomon, B.., & Stewart, W. (2015). Seidel's guide to physical examination (8th ed.). St. Louis, MO: Elsevier Mosby.

 American cancer society (2015) Melanoma Skin Cancer. 

Sherry Roberts is the author of this paper. A senior editor at MeldaResearch.Com in best custom research papers if you need a similar paper you can place your order for custom college essay services.