One fine day when I was at a local store I was impressed by the hair coloring of the clerk seated there. I told her how beautiful the coloring looked on her with that perfect dark base and the streaks that looked so natural. It seemed as if the sun itself had beautifully dyed her hair. We got talking about how when we were young we did not have to take the help of any hair dye. We had to spray SunIn on the hair and exposed it to sunlight for an hour or so and we had the desired hair color. This led to discussing how that was almost impossible now what with the ozone layer weakening and the ultraviolet rays having the potential to cause irreparable damage to our hair. (SunIn by the way is not one of the aerosols but is a pump spray).

But you probably didn’t come here to read about hair coloring techniques that are sun-free or chemical free, for that matterat least not specifically. You came looking for information on the different types of skin cancer. The speculation and theory does hold some evidence against chemicals in-ahem-health and beauty products; and it does point to the sun’s “damaging rays” as a possible cause, etc., but here, since we aren’t medical professionals, specialist, or experts, the info on the types of skin cancer is going to be basic and absent of finger-pointing, if you will:

The major types of skin cancer are: Basal Cell Carcinoma (also referred to as non-melanoma skin cancer); Melanoma and Squamous Cell Carcinoma.

Melanoma (also called Malignant Melanoma or Cutaneous Melanoma) - The cancer cells take birth in the melanocytes which is the pigment that gives skin its color. The University of Maryland medicine says that Melanoma is the most harmful of all the different types of skin cancer. It mostly occurs in people who have fair skin, light hair and light eyes. It also occurs in people who have other complexions too. People who have brown or black complexion are equally at risk of contracting Melanoma. The symptoms of the disease includes moles that have recently changed color, shape, size, or its state (if it starts to ooze or bleed), or a mole that according to the University of Maryland medicine is swollen, itchy, or hard.

Squamous Cell Carcinoma- This is also known as non-melanoma skin cancer. In the early stages it manifested in red colored patches or nodules in the skin. It is the second most common type of cancer and affects mostly the fair skinned. It is evident mostly in the rims of the ears, lips, face, and mouth.

Basal Cell Carcinoma- It is another of the most commonly found skin cancers. This type of cancer begins as a fleshy nodule in the neck, hands or the head. According to University of Maryland medicine this type of cancer affects 90% of the people in the US. This type of cancer too mostly affects the Caucasians.

My mother had Basal Cell Carcinoma on her lip, and while we thought it to be Herpes, she knew it was “sun blister” and immediately went to the doctor to know about it. This is good news if you are one of those that talks about the loss of the days of being in the sun, of sunbathing, swimming and frolicking outdoors in the warm sunshine.