Learn about Skin cancer (squamous cell) symptoms from Consumer Reports Health.

Skin cancer (squamous cell)

What are the symptoms of squamous cell skin cancer?

The main symptom of squamous cell skin cancer is having a red, brown or pink crusted lump on your skin that looks different from the skin around it. This lump might not heal.

If you have squamous cell skin cancer, you may have some of the following symptoms. Squamous cell skin cancer may appear as a patch of skin that:

Source:
Jerant AF, Johnson JT, Sheridan CD, et al.
Early detection and treatment of skin cancer.
American Family Physician. 2000; 62: 357-368.

Source:
Marghoob AA.
Basal and squamous cell carcinomas: what every primary care physician should know.
Postgraduate Medicine. 1997; 102: 139-142, 146, 152-154.

Source:
Alam M, Ratner D.
Cutaneous squamous-cell carcinoma.
New England Journal of Medicine. 2001; 344: 975-83.

Is a different color from the skin around it (the patch may look reddish, brown or pink)
May flake, hurt or bleed
May have crusting, especially on the edges of the patch
May have raised or sunken areas.

Squamous cell skin cancers can vary in size from slightly more than 1/16 of an inch across to up to 2 inches across. They can appear anywhere on your skin. But they usually appear in the skin on the parts of your body that get the most sun. They're most likely to appear on your:

Source:
Marks R.
Squamous cell carcinoma.
Lancet. 1996; 347: 735-738.

⁴

Squamous cell skin cancers appear on the parts of your body that get the most sun.

Head
Neck
Forearms
Lower legs
Upper body (in men)
Bottom lip
Tops of your ears.

If you're a woman, your legs, face and lower arms probably get the most sun. If you're a man who works outside without wearing a shirt, your face, arms and upper body probably get the most sun. So be sure to check the skin in these areas especially carefully.

Source:
Alam M, Ratner D.
Cutaneous squamous-cell carcinoma.
New England Journal of Medicine. 2001; 344: 975-83.

Different types of squamous cell skin cancer

There are several different types of squamous cell skin cancer.

One type of squamous cell skin cancer is Bowen's disease. This type of skin cancer doesn't spread below the top layer of your skin.

Source:
Alam M, Ratner D.
Cutaneous squamous-cell carcinoma.
New England Journal of Medicine. 2001; 344: 975-83.

³ This cancer may look like

eczema
Eczema is a very itchy rash. It may be dark and bumpy and release fluid. Scratching makes it worse. You can get eczema anywhere on your body, but it is most common on the wrists, the insides of the elbows and the backs of the knees. If you have asthma or allergies you are more likely to get eczema than someone who doesn't have these conditions.

eczema or

psoriasis
Psoriasis is a skin condition. If you have it, patches of your skin are covered by a dry, red rash that has grey or silvery flakes. You usually get psoriasis on your elbows, knees, scalp, nails, groin and lower back. If you have psoriasis, there will be times when you have symptoms and times when you don't.

psoriasis. Where you get Bowen's disease seems to depend on your sex. If you're a woman, you're more likely to get it on your leg. If you're a man, you're more likely to get it on your ears or your scalp.

Source:
Lohmann CM, Solomon AR.
Clinicopathologic variants of cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma.
Advances in Anatomic Pathology. 2001; 8: 27-36.

⁵
You can also get a type of squamous cell skin cancer that looks like a

warts
Warts are small lumps that can grow on your skin. Warts are often caused by an infection with a kind of virus called a papillomavirus.

wart. This is called a verrucous carcinoma. This cancer is rare. But if it isn't treated, it can destroy the parts of your skin and your bone that are near it. It usually doesn't spread to other parts of your body.

Source:
Lohmann CM, Solomon AR.
Clinicopathologic variants of cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma.
Advances in Anatomic Pathology. 2001; 8: 27-36.

⁵ This cancer tends to appear in your mouth, on the soles of your feet or in your genitals and your

anus
The anus, which is at the end of the rectum, is where a stool leaves your body when you go to the bathroom. Part of the anus is a muscle that helps you hold in the stool until you are on the toilet.

anus, but it can show up anywhere on your skin.
If you're a man and you haven't been circumcised, you can get another type of squamous cell skin cancer under the foreskin of your penis. Doctors call this erythroplasia of Queyrat. It's very rare. It appears as patches that may bleed and crust or be flaky and itchy. You may get one patch or many. If it's not treated, it can turn into cancer of the penis. You're more likely to get this type of cancer if you've had infections on your penis, such as genital warts.

Source:
Lohmann CM, Solomon AR.
Clinicopathologic variants of cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma.
Advances in Anatomic Pathology. 2001; 8: 27-36.

⁵

If you're worried about any unusual spots or patches on your skin, see your doctor.

Sources for the information on this page:

Jerant AF, Johnson JT, Sheridan CD, et al.Early detection and treatment of skin cancer.American Family Physician. 2000; 62: 357-368.

Marghoob AA.Basal and squamous cell carcinomas: what every primary care physician should know.Postgraduate Medicine. 1997; 102: 139-142, 146, 152-154.

Alam M, Ratner D.Cutaneous squamous-cell carcinoma.New England Journal of Medicine. 2001; 344: 975-83.

Marks R.Squamous cell carcinoma.Lancet. 1996; 347: 735-738.

Lohmann CM, Solomon AR.Clinicopathologic variants of cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma.Advances in Anatomic Pathology. 2001; 8: 27-36.

This information was last updated on Apr 14, 2009

This information is for educational use only, and is not a substitute for prompt professional medical advice. Readers should always consult a physician or other professional for advice and treatment.
© BMJ Publishing Group Limited 2009. All rights reserved.

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