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If melanoma skin cancer spreads
Cancer cells can spread from the area of skin where the cancer started to other parts of the body. This spread is called metastasis.
Understanding how a type of cancer usually grows and spreads helps your healthcare team plan your treatment and future care. If melanoma skin cancer spreads, it can spread to the following:
- lymph nodes near where the cancer started (called regional lymph nodes)
- lung
- liver
- other areas of skin away from where the cancer started
- soft tissue under the skin (called subcutaneous tissue)
- brain
- gastrointestinal (GI) tract, such as the small intestine
- bone
- adrenal gland
soft tissue
The soft tissues in the body (distinct from bone and cartilage).
Soft tissue includes muscle, fat, fibrous tissue, blood vessels and other tissues that support structures and organs in the body.
Stories
I was in total shock when I heard the diagnosis of cancer. Cancer to me was an adult’s disease. Being a 13-year-old teenager, it certainly wasn’t even on my radar.
Cancer affects all Canadians
Nearly 1 in 2 Canadians is expected to be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime.
