Are skin cancers life-threatening?
The two most common types of skin cancer, basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma, are rarely life threatening. These tumors replace normal surrounding tissue and generally do not spread to other areas. The third most common skin cancer, malignant melanoma, can be life threatening if treated late. When discovered and treated early, malignant melanoma is curable. Basal cell carcinomas and squamous cell carcinomas never “turn into” malignant melanoma.
