My own skin cancer scare, by Dr. Reichman

Skin cancer can happen to all of us — even doctors. It happened to me.

As of last week, I have a new scar on my leg. Before that, I had a strange spot. I finally got it checked out and it was found to be pre-cancerous.

As a child, I ran around in shorts during my summers at the New Jersey shore, getting the requisite “healthy” tan. I occasionally burned. Who ever heard of putting sun block on legs?

Now I am finally paying the price. I noticed a flat brown mark on the inside edge of my right calf, which I watched with mild interest for the past year.

Recently, it developed little black specks and irregular borders. I thought it should be looked at by someone other than myself. But still I waited — my dermatologist got married and was on his honeymoon.

Finally, I went for an appointment in his office. “Probably nothing,” he said. But just to be safe, he numbed it and excised the area of dark pigment.

The pathologist reported it was not “nothing.” It was a pre-melanoma.

The good news is that it was caught early and will in no way affect my health.

The bad news is that — no doubt because I am a doctor — it became infected. That superficial pigmented area became a deep, unsightly cavity that required a visit to the plastic surgeon, who will revise it, creating a more cosmetically-pleasing scar. And that’s all the therapy I will need.

I cannot promise that everyone will have such a fortunate result. 

Since 1980, the incidence of melanoma among light-skinned Americans has tripled. Melanoma is the 7th most common cancer in women, causing three-quarters of skin-cancer deaths.

Women are seeing a great increase in melanoma on their legs, probably because few of them put sunblock on their lower extremities. So if a spot appears on your leg, it should raise extra suspicion.

Fortunately, melanoma is easily cured if it is caught and removed before it spreads. But once it reaches the lymph nodes, the five-year survival rate is less than 40 percent.

Nobody who has exposed skin is impervious to the cancer-causing rays of the sun. But some of us are at greater risk. Your risk increases if:

You spent considerable time in the sun as a child or teenager. (Most cancers are probably caused by sunburns that occur before age 18.)

• You had multiple blistering sunburns. (Three or more of these in childhood quadruple your risk.)
• You have fair skin, blue eyes, red hair, blond hair or freckles. (I have brown hair and blue eyes.) This does not mean that dark-skinned people are immune from the sun’s harmful rays, just that the chances are better.
• You have two or more relatives who developed melanoma.
• You have lots of moles.

To know whether any of these brown, black or red spots are becoming more than cosmetic imperfections, you must start with your own skin examination.

Look at your birthday suit. (In fact, as a handy reminder to carry out this vital self-examination, I suggest you do this every year around your birthday.) Focus on pigmented marks anywhere from your scalp to your toes (and even between your toes).

Check whether these moles have:

• an asymmetrical shape
• a ragged or irregular border
• color variations of brown, black or red
• a diameter bigger than a pencil eraser
• changes in size, shape, color or texture

And then, if you notice any of the above, do something about it by consulting a dermatologist. If you are over 30, you should be seeing a dermatologist anyway every two years for a routine mole check.

Dr. Reichman’s Bottom Line: Pay attention to marks on your skin, and get them checked out before it’s too late. A small scar is far preferable to a malignancy that can kill you.

Dr. Judith Reichman, the “Today” show's medical contributor on women's health, has practiced obstetrics and gynecology for more than 20 years. You will find many answers to your questions in her latest book, "Slow Your Clock Down: The Complete Guide to a Healthy, Younger You," published by William Morrow, a division of .