 |
[Home] | [Search] | [Medical Q&A Forums] | [Patient Network] |
This information has been brought to you by
Med Help International,
licenced by the National Cancer Institute as a distributor of CancerNet.
CancerMail from the National Cancer Institute
Information from PDQ for Patients
Merkel cell carcinoma
208/10847
** DESCRIPTION **
-- What is Merkel cell carcinoma? --
Merkel cell carcinoma, also called neuroendocrine cancer of the skin, is a rare
type of disease in which malignant (cancer) cells are found on or just beneath
the skin and in hair follicles. Merkel cell carcinoma usually appears as firm,
painless, shiny lumps of skin. These lumps or tumors can be red, pink, or blue
in color and vary in size from less than a quarter of an inch to more than two
inches. Merkel cell carcinoma is usually found on the sun-exposed areas of the
head, neck, arms, and legs. This type of cancer occurs mostly in whites
between 60 and 80 years of age, but it can occur in people of other races and
ages as well.
Merkel cell carcinoma grows rapidly and often metastasizes (spreads) to other
parts of the body. Even relatively small tumors are capable of metastasizing.
When the disease spreads, it tends to spread to the regional (nearby) lymph
nodes and may also spread to the liver, bone, lungs, and brain. Lymph nodes
are small, bean-shaped structures that are found throughout the body. They
produce and store infection-fighting cells.
Treatment of Merkel cell carcinoma depends on the stage of the disease, and
the patient's age and overall condition.
** STAGE EXPLANATION **
-- Stages of Merkel cell carcinoma --
After Merkel cell carcinoma has been diagnosed (found), more tests will be done
to find out if cancer cells have spread from the place the cancer started to
other parts of the body. The process used to find out whether the cancer has
spread to other parts of the body is called staging. It is important to know
the stage of the disease to plan the best treatment. The following stages are
used for Merkel cell carcinoma:
-- Stage I --
The primary tumor has not spread to lymph nodes or other parts of the body.
Lymph nodes are small, bean-shaped structures that are found throughout the
body. They produce and store infection-fighting cells.
-- Stage II --
The cancer has spread to nearby lymph nodes, but has not spread to other parts
of the body.
-- Stage III --
The cancer has spread beyond nearby lymph nodes and to other parts of the body.
-- Recurrent stage --
Recurrent disease means that the cancer has recurred (come back) after it has
been treated. It may come back in the same part of the body or in another part
of the body.
** TREATMENT OPTION OVERVIEW **
-- How Merkel cell carcinoma is treated --
There are treatments for all patients with Merkel cell carcinoma. Three kinds
of treatment are used:
- surgery (taking out the cancer)
- radiation therapy (using high-dose x-rays or other high-energy rays to kill
cancer cells)
- chemotherapy (using drugs to kill cancer cells)
There are several different types of surgery that may be used to remove the
tumor. These include:
Wide surgical excision takes out the cancer and some of the skin around the
tumor.
Cryosurgery freezes the tumor and then removes it.
Micrographic surgery is a tissue-sparing technique that removes only the
tumor.
Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to kill cancer cells and shrink
tumors. Radiation may come from a machine outside the body (external radiation
therapy) or from putting materials that produce radiation (radioisotopes)
through thin plastic tubes in the area where the cancer cells are found
(internal radiation therapy).
Chemotherapy uses drugs to kill cancer cells. Chemotherapy may be taken by
pill, or it may be put into the body by a needle in a vein or muscle.
Chemotherapy is called a systemic treatment because the drugs enter the
bloodstream, travel through the body, and can kill cancer cells throughout the
body.
If a doctor removes all the cancer that can be seen at the time of the
operation, a patient may be given chemotherapy after surgery to kill any cancer
cells that are left. Chemotherapy given after an operation to a person who has
no cancer cells that can be found is called adjuvant chemotherapy.
** STAGE I MERKEL CELL CARCINOMA **
Treatment may be one of the following:
1. Surgery alone.
2. Surgery followed by radiation therapy to the tumor site and regional lymph
nodes.
** STAGE II MERKEL CELL CARCINOMA **
Treatment may be one of the following:
1. Surgery alone.
2. Surgery followed by radiation therapy to the tumor site and regional lymph
nodes.
3. Surgery with or without radiation therapy followed by adjuvant
chemotherapy.
** STAGE III MERKEL CELL CARCINOMA **
Treatment will probably be chemotherapy.
** RECURRENT MERKEL CELL CARCINOMA **
Treatment may be one of the following:
1. Surgery alone.
2. Surgery followed by radiation therapy to the tumor site and regional lymph
nodes.
3. Surgery with or without radiation therapy followed by adjuvant
chemotherapy.
** TO LEARN MORE **
Call
For more information, U.S. residents may call the National Cancer Institute's
(NCI's) Cancer Information Service toll-free at 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237)
Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Deaf and hard-of-hearing
callers with TTY equipment may call 1-800-332-8615. The call is free and a
trained Cancer Information Specialist is available to answer your questions.
Web sites and Organizations
The NCI's Cancer.gov Web site (http://cancer.gov) provides online access to
information on cancer, clinical trials, and other Web sites and organizations
that offer support and resources for cancer patients and their families. There
are also many other places where people can get materials and information about
cancer treatment and services. Local hospitals may have information on local
and regional agencies that offer information about finances, getting to and
from treatment, receiving care at home, and dealing with problems associated
with cancer treatment.
Publications
The NCI has booklets and other materials for patients, health professionals,
and the public. These publications discuss types of cancer, methods of cancer
treatment, coping with cancer, and clinical trials. Some publications provide
information on tests for cancer, cancer causes and prevention, cancer
statistics, and NCI research activities. NCI materials on these and other
topics may be ordered online or printed directly from the NCI Publications
Locator (https://cissecure.nci.nih.gov/ncipubs). These materials can also be
ordered by telephone from the Cancer Information Service toll-free at
1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237), TTY at 1-800-332-8615.
LiveHelp
The NCI's LiveHelp service, a program available on several of the Institute's
Web sites, provides Internet users with the ability to chat online with an
Information Specialist. The service is available from 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.
Eastern time, Monday through Friday. Information Specialists can help Internet
users find information on NCI Web sites and answer questions about cancer.
Write
For more information from the NCI, please write to this address:
National Cancer Institute
Office of Communications
31 Center Drive, MSC 2580
Bethesda, MD 20892-2580
** ABOUT PDQ **
PDQ is a comprehensive cancer database available on Cancer.gov.
PDQ is the National Cancer Institute's (NCI's) comprehensive cancer information
database. Most of the information contained in PDQ is available online at
Cancer.gov (http://cancer.gov), the NCI's Web site. PDQ is provided as a
service of the NCI. The NCI is part of the National Institutes of Health, the
federal government's focal point for biomedical research.
PDQ contains cancer information summaries.
The PDQ database contains summaries of the latest published information on
cancer prevention, detection, genetics, treatment, supportive care, and
complementary and alternative medicine. Most summaries are available in two
versions. The health professional versions provide detailed information
written in technical language. The patient versions are written in
easy-to-understand, non-technical language. Both versions provide current and
accurate cancer information.
The PDQ cancer information summaries are developed by cancer experts and
reviewed regularly.
Editorial Boards made up of experts in oncology and related specialties are
responsible for writing and maintaining the cancer information summaries. The
summaries are reviewed regularly and changes are made as new information
becomes available. The date on each summary ("Date Last Modified") indicates
the time of the most recent change.
PDQ also contains information on clinical trials.
Before starting treatment, patients may want to think about taking part in a
clinical trial. A clinical trial is a study to answer a scientific question,
such as whether one treatment is better than another. Trials are based on past
studies and what has been learned in the laboratory. Each trial answers
certain scientific questions in order to find new and better ways to help
cancer patients. During treatment clinical trials, information is collected
about new treatments, the risks involved, and how well they do or do not work.
If a clinical trial shows that a new treatment is better than one currently
being used, the new treatment may become "standard."
Listings of clinical trials are included in PDQ and are available online at
Cancer.gov (http://cancer.gov/clinical_trials). Descriptions of the trials are
available in health professional and patient versions. Many cancer doctors who
take part in clinical trials are also listed in PDQ. For more information,
call the Cancer Information Service 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237); TTY at
1-800-332-8615.
Date Last Modified: 09/2002
******************************************************************************
* If you want to know more about cancer and how it is treated, or if you *
* if you wish to know about clinical trials for your type of cancer, you *
* can call the NCI's Cancer Information Service at 1-800-422-6237, toll *
* free. A trained information specialist can talk with you and answer *
* your questions. *
******************************************************************************
|
[Home] | [Search] | [Medical Q&A Forums] | [Patient Network] |
This information has been brought to you by
Med Help International,
licenced by the National Cancer Institute as a distributor of CancerNet.