Squamous cell carcinoma

[ItsOkItsJustMyBreath]

Please help, my dm has just been told she has this on her scalp. She will be seeing someone at the local hospital within 2 weeks but it's so frightening I can't eat or do anything. She has had the hard growth cut out by her GP and it was quite large (4 stitches). They sent it off to e examined and it came back as this type of skin cancer. Does anyone have any experience of this? She has an autoimmune disease as well and not sure if that will compromise her treatment options.

I have had several of these removed over the years as I am immunosuppressed. It very very rarely is malignant and is very curable It does recur those which is a pain but once you have had it you can spot it early and it can be removed by freezing so no stitches. If she is on immunosuppressants that can cause it. I am on azathioprine and it is common with that one

Try not to worry. This is one of the non-scary skin cancers, almost always sort-outable and I have never actually heard of it killing anyone though I think like once in about a million cases it can spread. Seriously if this was the result from the path report she is one of the lucky ones

I hope she recovers quickly from the treatment.

SCCs are very common skin cancers, but unlike melanomas, they don't spread to places other than skin. If they can be removed surgically, then that is all the treatment they need, but sometimes they grow in places that its hard to remove neatly and they are treated with radiotherapy. But if caught early, then they can be frozen or treated with special cream.

So rest easy, your MIL will be fine with no further treatment

Thank you so so much for helping to put both my and my dm's mind at rest. It's hearing the word cancer that scares the bejeesus out of you I think, too many of my friends and family have been lost to it. Just got to wait until the hospital appt in the next 2 weeks but this has calmed me down considerably.

noddy I am sorry you have been through this (are going through this) and thank you for a first hand account of it.

Hi
Official sources of information to explain the type of skin cancer and treatment may be useful when you feel up to reading it. The Cancer Uk pages are pretty good Cancer uk - general skin cancer and Squamous cell carcinoma
Best wishes to your mother.

Brilliant links there Bela, thank you. I never knew about this before but it seems to be very common and very treatable, thank you. Am going to spend the day with dm and ds doing nice things that don't involve the 'c' word today