Living in Florida means spending plenty of time in the sun. Whether you are at the beach, walking around an Orlando theme park, working in the yard, playing golf, or relaxing by the pool, ultraviolet rays can add up over time.
Skin cancer is the most common cancer in the United States, but it does not always look the way people expect. Some spots resemble harmless moles, pimples, dry patches, or minor sores.
The good news is that many skin cancers are highly treatable when found early. Learning the common warning signs, checking your skin regularly, and discussing changes with your healthcare provider can help you take a proactive approach to your skin health.
You do not need to diagnose a spot on your own. If something looks new, different, or simply leaves you wondering, your provider at Family Tree Primary Care is here to help.
Why Florida Residents Should Pay Close Attention to Skin Changes
Your skin naturally changes over time. Aging, hormones, medications, stress, injuries, and sun exposure can all leave marks or areas of discoloration. Most of these changes are harmless.
However, Florida’s sunny climate can increase the amount of ultraviolet, or UV, radiation your skin receives throughout the year. UV radiation from sunlight and artificial sources such as tanning beds is a major risk factor for skin cancer.
Central Florida residents may receive additional sun exposure through everyday activities such as:
- Swimming or spending time near pools, lakes, and beaches
- Golfing, running, biking, and playing outdoor sports
- Working in landscaping, construction, or other outdoor jobs
- Visiting theme parks and outdoor attractions
- Driving with sunlight coming through the side window
- Completing yardwork or walking pets throughout the year
Water and sand can also reflect UV rays, increasing exposure even when you are sitting under partial shade.
Early skin cancer is not always dramatic. Some changes to watch for include:
- A new or unusual bump
- A flat pink, red, brown, or discolored patch
- A mole that begins to look different
- A sore that repeatedly scabs or opens
- A spot that bleeds easily
- A rough area that does not improve
- A growth that looks different from the other spots on your body
Your role is simply to notice changes and share them with your provider. Evaluating a new or persistent spot does not mean it is cancer. It means you are taking a thoughtful, preventive approach to your health.
The Three Most Common Types of Skin Cancer
Skin cancer can take several forms. The three most familiar categories are basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, and melanoma. Each can appear differently depending on its location, stage, and the person’s natural skin tone.
Pictures can be helpful, but they cannot confirm whether a growth is cancerous. Any spot that is new, changing, bleeding, painful, or not healing should be evaluated by a healthcare professional.
Basal Cell Carcinoma (BCC)
Basal cell carcinoma is the most common type of skin cancer. It usually develops slowly and most often appears on areas that receive frequent sun exposure, including the face, ears, scalp, neck, shoulders, and arms.
Possible visual cues include:
- A pearly, shiny, or slightly transparent bump
- A pink, red, brown, or glossy growth
- A raised area with visible small blood vessels
- A flat patch that looks irritated or scar-like
- A sore that heals and then returns
- A bump that crusts, oozes, or bleeds easily
- A growth with a rolled or raised border
On darker skin tones, basal cell carcinoma may appear brown, black, glossy, or more deeply pigmented rather than pink or pearly.
Because these areas may resemble acne, eczema, irritated skin, or a shaving injury, people sometimes wait for them to disappear. A spot that repeatedly returns or does not fully heal is worth showing your provider.
Squamous Cell Carcinoma (SCC)
Squamous cell carcinoma often looks rougher, thicker, or more textured than basal cell carcinoma. It can develop anywhere, but it frequently appears on sun-exposed areas such as the face, ears, scalp, neck, lower lip, forearms, and backs of the hands.
Possible visual cues include:
- A scaly, rough, or crusty patch
- A firm red, pink, or skin-colored bump
- A raised growth with a lower area in the center
- A sore that does not heal
- A growth that looks similar to a wart
- A tender area that hurts when touched
- A spot that bleeds or develops a recurring crust
Squamous cell carcinoma can sometimes grow more quickly than basal cell carcinoma and may spread when left untreated. A persistent scaly area is worth mentioning even if it is small or does not hurt.
Melanoma
Melanoma is less common than basal cell or squamous cell carcinoma, but it is more likely to spread to other parts of the body.
Melanoma may begin in an existing mole or appear as a new spot. It can develop on any skin tone and in places that receive little direct sunlight, including the scalp, back, underarms, between the toes, beneath a nail, and on the soles of the feet.
Warning signs may include:
- A new mole or dark spot
- A mole that changes in shape, size, or color
- A spot with several different colors
- A mole with an irregular or poorly defined border
- A spot that looks noticeably different from your other moles
- A growth that begins itching, bleeding, crusting, or hurting
- A dark line or discoloration beneath a fingernail or toenail
The ABCDE Rule for Identifying Possible Melanoma
The ABCDE rule from the American Academy of Dermatology is a helpful way to remember common melanoma warning signs.
- A – Asymmetry: One side of the mole does not match the other.
- B – Border: The edges look irregular, notched, scalloped, or blurry.
- C – Color: The spot contains more than one shade or includes unusual colors such as black, blue, red, pink, or white.
- D – Diameter: The spot is larger than approximately 6 millimeters, or about the size of a pencil eraser. However, melanoma can also be smaller.
- E – Evolving: The spot is changing in size, shape, color, texture, sensation, or appearance.
The “E” for evolving is especially important. Any mole or spot that begins changing deserves attention, even if it does not match every other part of the ABCDE guide.
You can also use the “ugly duckling” idea. If one spot looks noticeably different from all the other moles or freckles around it, consider having it evaluated.
Who Has a Higher Risk of Skin Cancer?
Anyone can develop skin cancer, regardless of age or skin tone. However, some factors may increase risk.
These include:
- Frequent or long-term exposure to sunlight
- Living in a sunny climate such as Florida
- Working or spending significant time outdoors
- A history of blistering sunburns, especially during childhood
- Using tanning beds or sun lamps
- Having light skin, freckles, or skin that burns easily
- Having blond or red hair or light-colored eyes
- Having many moles or unusual-looking moles
- A personal history of skin cancer
- A family history of melanoma or other skin cancers
- A weakened immune system
- Taking medications that increase sensitivity to sunlight
People with deeper skin tones have a lower overall risk of some sun-related skin cancers, but they can still develop skin cancer. In some cases, cancers may be found later because warning signs are less expected or appear in less visible areas.
That is why everyone should become familiar with their skin, including areas such as the scalp, palms, soles of the feet, and beneath the nails.
Steps Florida Families Can Take to Help Prevent Skin Cancer
Not every case of skin cancer can be prevented, but reducing UV exposure can lower your risk. In Florida, sun protection should be part of your regular routine rather than something reserved for beach days.
- Use Broad-Spectrum Sunscreen: Apply a broad-spectrum, water-resistant sunscreen with an SPF of at least 30 to exposed skin. Use it even on cloudy days.
- Reapply Regularly: Reapply sunscreen at least every two hours and after swimming, sweating, or toweling off.
- Do Not Forget Commonly Missed Areas: Apply sunscreen to the ears, scalp, back of the neck, tops of the feet, and backs of the hands.
- Seek Shade: Limit direct sun exposure during the middle of the day, generally between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.
- Wear Protective Clothing: Long sleeves, wide-brimmed hats, sunglasses, and clothing with an ultraviolet protection factor can provide additional coverage.
- Avoid Tanning Beds: Artificial UV radiation can increase the risk of basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, and melanoma.
- Protect Children Early: Help children develop sun-safe habits and reduce the risk of painful or blistering sunburns.
- Check Your Skin Monthly: Learn what your moles, freckles, and other spots normally look like so changes are easier to recognize.
- Keep Up With Routine Care: Ask your provider how often you should receive a skin evaluation based on your personal and family history.
How to Perform a Skin Check at Home
A monthly skin check can help you notice changes earlier. Choose a well-lit room and use a full-length mirror and a handheld mirror when possible.
Work from head to toe:
- Look at your face, ears, neck, chest, abdomen, arms, and hands.
- Check between your fingers and beneath your fingernails.
- Examine the front, sides, and backs of your legs.
- Look between your toes, beneath your toenails, and on the soles of your feet.
- Use a mirror to check your back, shoulders, buttocks, and the backs of your thighs.
- Part your hair in sections or ask someone to help check your scalp.
Consider taking a clear photo of a spot you are monitoring. A dated picture may make it easier to see whether the area is changing over time.
Home checks are useful, but they are not a substitute for medical evaluation. It can be difficult to distinguish a harmless growth from skin cancer by appearance alone.
What We Check During a Skin Exam at Family Tree
During a skin evaluation at Family Tree Primary Care, your provider will begin by listening to what you have noticed and why the area concerns you.
Depending on your needs, your provider may:
- Examine the color, shape, border, size, and texture of the spot
- Compare it with your other moles, freckles, or skin growths
- Ask when you first noticed it and whether it has changed
- Ask about bleeding, itching, tenderness, crusting, or poor healing
- Review your history of sun exposure and sunburns
- Discuss previous skin cancers or biopsies
- Review your family history of melanoma or other skin cancers
- Check other areas when appropriate
- Determine whether the spot can be monitored or needs additional evaluation
A skin exam is generally visual and does not automatically mean a procedure will be performed. Your provider will explain what they see and discuss the next step with you.
One benefit of relationship-based primary care is that your provider becomes familiar with your health history and baseline over time. This can make it easier to recognize when something has changed.
When We May Recommend a Dermatologist
Primary care is a helpful first place to bring up a new or changing spot. Many common skin concerns can be evaluated and managed in a primary care setting.
However, your provider may recommend a dermatologist when:
- A spot has features that could suggest skin cancer
- A closer examination with specialized equipment is needed
- A skin biopsy may be appropriate
- A growth needs specialized removal or treatment
- You have a personal history of melanoma or repeated skin cancers
- You have many unusual moles or other high-risk features
- You need regular full-body surveillance
- A diagnosis remains unclear after an initial evaluation
A dermatologist may use a tool called a dermatoscope to look at structures beneath the skin’s surface. If needed, the dermatologist may remove a small sample of tissue for a biopsy. A biopsy is the test used to determine whether abnormal cells are present.
If specialty care is appropriate, the Family Tree Primary Care team can help explain the recommendation, coordinate the referral, and support you through the next steps.
When Should You See a Doctor About a Skin Change?
You do not need to wait until a spot looks serious. Consider scheduling an evaluation if something is new, changing, or does not seem right to you.
It is especially worth getting checked if you notice:
- A spot that bleeds, crusts, or does not heal
- A sore that heals and then returns
- A mole that looks noticeably different from your others
- A mole that changes in color, size, shape, or texture
- A rough or scaly patch that continues growing
- A new bump that remains shiny, pearly, firm, or tender
- A spot that begins itching, hurting, or bleeding
- A dark streak under a nail that was not caused by an injury
- A new growth that persists for several weeks
These changes do not necessarily mean you have skin cancer. Many noncancerous skin conditions can look similar. An evaluation can provide clarity and help determine whether the area should be photographed, monitored, treated, biopsied, or referred to dermatology.
Family Tree Primary Care Is Here to Support You
Most skin changes are harmless, but it is not always possible to tell by looking at a picture online. If you notice a new mole, a sore that will not heal, or a spot that seems different, it is worth starting a conversation.
At Family Tree Primary Care, our goal is to help you stay healthy, informed, and confident in your care. No concern is too small to mention.
Because our providers take time to know you, we can consider your skin concern alongside your medical history, medications, family history, and usual skin patterns. If a spot needs monitoring, treatment, or specialty evaluation, we will walk you through the process with clear guidance and a personalized plan.
If something does not look or feel right, schedule a visit today. Our team is here to support you through every stage of your health.