When you think of skin cancer, scary looking moles probably jump to mind. But there are other more subtle symptoms that are much easier to brush off.
Getting out of breath doing day-to-day tasks, such as vacuuming, is considered to be a symptom of melanoma skin cancer.
Melanoma, the most serious skin cancer, is diagnosed 17,500 times a year. The deadly disease takes the lives of 2,340 people per year, according to Cancer Research UK (CRUK).
It develops on skin that gets too much sun. Survival rates are very high, with 87 per cent of patients living at least 10 years after their diagnosis. But if left untreated the cancer can spread to other parts of the body, such as the liver, brain lungs and bones. Once it reaches the lungs, it can trigger breathlessness, according to cancer charity Macmillan.
Like with any cancer, survival rates are best when the illness is detected fast when it is only affecting the skin. That's why it's worth knowing the eight other easy-to-miss signs of skin cancer.
The most common sign of melanoma is the appearance of a new mole or a change in an existing mole.
In women, the most common specific location for melanoma skin cancers in the UK is the legs. Men are more likely to see melanomas in their trunk – the back or torso.
CRUK said rates have tripled in the over-55s since the 1990s, partly because of a fashion for cheap package holidays and tanning that date back to the 60s. There are also more people coming forward and getting their skin checked, it added.
