- Check your skin regularly to help identify early warning signs of melanoma: Examine your skin, and those of your loved ones, every month to help identify melanoma at an early stage while it is still easily treatable. A look today may mean a life tomorrow.
- Check for unusual or “ugly duckling” spots or moles: One of the easiest ways to identify an early melanoma is to look for spots or moles that appear different from others on your body.
- Check for spots or moles that have unusual shapes: Spots or moles may be melanomas if one-half doesn’t look like the other or if the edge is irregular or jagged.
- Check for spots or moles that have more than one color: Spots or moles may be melanomas if they are multi-colored. The most frequent colors include black, brown, tan, red, blue or white. However, a small number of melanomas are pink or skin-colored.
- Check for spots or moles that are large: Most melanomas are larger than a pencil eraser when diagnosed. However, melanomas can also be detected when they are smaller in diameter.
- Check for new spots or moles: It is normal to get new moles while you are younger; however, moles tend to develop less often after the age of 50. Although a melanoma may develop from a mole, it most commonly arises on “clear skin.”
- Check for sudden changes in spots or moles: The appearance of a spot or mole may change gradually as you get older; however, a sudden change may be a warning sign of melanoma.
- Check your entire body: Although melanoma usually occurs on an area of your skin that is exposed to the sun, it may be found anywhere on your body. Make sure to check the bottoms of your feet, the palms of your hands and your fingernails and toenails. A brown or black streak under a nail may be a melanoma, especially if a single nail is involved.
- Ask someone else to check areas of your body that are difficult to examine, including your back: About one-third of melanomas occur in hard-to-see areas of the body, including the back. Make sure to ask someone else to help you examine these sites for signs of skin cancer. This can greatly improve the chance of finding an early, more curable melanoma.
- Most importantly, make an appointment with your health provider right away if you or a loved one finds a suspicious spot or mole. When in doubt, check it out!