From medizzy

Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), the second most common form of skin cancer, is an uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells arising from the squamous cells in the epidermis, the skin’s outermost layer.

SCCs often look like scaly red patches, open sores, warts or elevated growths with a central depression; they may crust or bleed. They can become disfiguring and sometimes deadly if allowed to grow.

Cumulative, long-term exposure to ultraviolet radiation from the sun over your lifetime causes most SCCs. Daily year-round sun exposure, intense exposure in the summer months or on sunny vacations and the UV produced by indoor tanning devices all add to the damage that can lead to SCC. .

SCCs may occur on all areas of the body, including the mucous membranes and genitals, but are most common in areas frequently exposed to the sun, such as the rim of the ear, lower lip, face, balding scalp, neck, hands, arms and legs. The skin in these areas often reveals telltale signs of sun damage, including wrinkles, pigment changes, freckles, “age spots,” loss of elasticity and broken blood vessels.

If left untreated, SCCs may spread (metastasize) to local lymph nodes, distant tissues and organs and can become life-threatening.