HealthInfo Aoraki South Canterbury
Several skin cancers are known as non-melanoma cancers. The most common of these are basal cell carcinoma (or BCC) and squamous cell carcinoma (or SCC).
These skin cancers are much more common in New Zealand than melanoma. They are especially common in fair-skinned people who have been exposed to a lot of sunshine through their lives.
Basal cell carcinoma look like slow-growing lumps that can be skin-coloured, pink or pigmented (darker than your skin). They often bleed or become ulcerated (raw and do not heal).
Squamous cell carcinoma are scaly or crusty lumps that grow over weeks to months. They are found on sun-exposed places like your face, ears, hands and arms.
The best way to prevent skin cancer is to avoid getting too much sun. Read Sun-smart behaviour for more information.
Self-skin checks are a good way to find spots that need to be checked by a health professional. Changes to look for include scaly or red patches, ulcers or sores that may bleed easily, itch or not heal.
If you are concerned about any skin changes you notice, get them checked by your general practice team.
If your general practice team thinks you might have a skin cancer, they may recommend taking a biopsy (taking off a small part of your skin lesion). Or they may recommend removing it by cutting it out (excision). They will then send the tissue that is removed to the laboratory to confirm what type of lesion it is. Read more about removal (excision) or biopsy of a skin lesion.
There are several treatment options for non-melanoma skin cancers. The most common are removal (excision), cryotherapy (freezing) and topical therapy (creams). Read more detailed information at Healthify He Puna Wairoa.
HealthInfo recommends the following pages
More information about what causes basal cell carcinoma, what it looks like (includes photographs) and how it is treated.
Information about what squamous cell carcinoma looks like (including photos), what causes it and how it is treated.
Information about how to use fluorouracil cream.
Information about how to use imiquimod cream.
Written by HealthInfo clinical advisers. Last reviewed September 2024.
See also:
Review key: HIMEL-15455