["Mel"atoninDeficient]

I have heard that sunburns do not become skin cancer immediately. How many months or years does it take for a sunburn to become skin cancer?My friend recently had a sunburn. Her sunburn was not healing and it became worse, so she went to a dermatologist 3 months after the sunburn happened. The dermatologist found that she has skin cancer. Could it be that she had skin cancer all along, and the recent sunburn did not cause her cancer?

[chelseamariebarnett]

as long as it took you to write this question. Haha good luck getting that cured

[Paramedic Girl]

No one knows how many hours, days, weeks, years one can spend in the sun before getting skin cancer.What else is that you do not have to burn to get it... tanning can give you skin cancer as well (both in sun beds and actual sun).Its always best to wear at least 15 spf (30 is better) and to not go tanning.

[Judist]

I got from wikipedia thatSkin cancer is most closely associated with chronic inflammation of the skin. This includes:1. Overexposure to UV-radiation can cause skin cancer either via the direct DNA damage or via the indirect DNA damage mechanism. UVA&UVB have both been implicated in causing DNA damage resulting in cancer. Sun exposure between 10AM and 4PM is most intense and therefore most harmful. Natural (sun)&artificial UV exposure (tanning salons) are associated with skin cancer.[citation needed] Since sunbeds cause mostly indirect DNA damage (free radicals) their use is associated with the deadliest form of skin cancer, malignant melanoma.[citation needed]2. Chronic non-healing wounds, especially burns. These are called Marjolin's ulcers based on their appearance, and can develop into squamous cell carcinoma.3. Genetic predisposition, including"Congenital Melanocytic Nevi Syndrome". CMNS is characterized by the presence of"nevi"or moles of varying size that either appear at or within 6 months of birth. Nevi larger than 20 mm (3/4") in size are at higher risk for becoming cancerous.4. Skin cancer is one of the potential dangers of ultraviolet germicidal irradiation.Skin can be protected by avoiding sunlight entirely, or wearing protective clothing while outdoors. Skin cancer is usually caused by exposing skin to UV rays excessively.about the treatmentMost skin cancers can be treated by removal of the lesion, making sure that the edges (margins) are free of the tumor cells. These excisions provide the best cure for both early and high-risk disease.For low-risk disease, radiation therapy and cryotherapy (freezing the cancer off) can provide adequate control of the disease; both, however, have lower overall cure rates than surgery.Mohs'micrographic surgery is a technique used to remove the cancer with the least amount of surrounding tissue and the edges are checked immediately to see if tumor is found. This provides the opportunity to remove the least amount of tissue and provide the best cosmetically favorable results. This is especially important for areas where excess skin is limited, such as the face. Cure rates are equivalent to wide excision. Special training is required to perform this technique.In the case of disease that has spread (metastasized) further surgical or chemotherapy may be required.[11]Scientists have recently been conducting experiments on what they have termed"immune- priming". This therapy is still in its infancy but has been shown to effectively attack foreign threats like viruses and also latch onto and attack skin cancers. More recently researchers have focused their efforts on strengthening the body's own naturally produced"helper T cells"that identify and lock onto cancer cells and help guide the killer cells to the cancer. Researchers infused patients with roughly 5 billion of the helper T cells without any harsh drugs or chemotherapy. This type of treatment if shown to be effective has no side effects and could change the way cancer patients are treatedabout how many month it's depend on how your skin can deffend from the ultraviolet radiation.sorry for my bad english. But sorry about your friend