Further tests for skin cancer

Most people with basal cell skin cancer or squamous cell skin cancer will not need these tests. They will only be done if your doctor thinks that your cancer may have spread to nearby lymph nodes or to another part of the body. For basal cell cancers, this is very unlikely. For squamous cell cancers, it is unlikely if they have been diagnosed early on.

You may be asked to have

• A chest X-ray
• An ultrasound scan
• A CT scan
• An MRI scan

A chest X-ray may be done because squamous cell skin cancer can sometimes spread to the lungs. This is not very common, but a chest X-ray can rule it out.

Ultrasound scans use sound waves to look at body organs. This test is not often used in skin cancer. There is information about having an ultrasound in the cancer tests section of CancerHelp UK.

CT scans and MRI scans can both show up lymph nodes that are affected by cancer. There is information about having a CT scan and an MRI scan in the cancer tests section of CancerHelp UK.

If your doctor thinks there is a possibility that your cancer has spread to your lymph nodes, you may be asked to have a sentinel lymph node biopsy.  If cancer cells are found, you may have surgery to remove the nearby nodes. This is because cancer cells in the nodes can grow into secondary cancers. Cancer cells can also spread from the nodes to other parts of the body. There is information about surgery to remove lymph nodes in the treatmen section section of CancerHelp UK.

You will be asked to go back to the hospital when your test results have come through. This may take a little time. Your doctor or clinical nurse specialist will give you an idea of how long the results will take. You will probably feel very anxious during this time. While you are waiting for results it may help to talk to a close friend or relative about how you are feeling. 

You may want to contact a cancer support group to talk to someone who has been through a similar experience. You may feel there are important issues you would like to talk over with someone who is trained to help you. There are organisations in the UK that have trained counsellors who can give you support. Look on the skin cancer organisations page for details of how to get in touch. If you want to find people to share experiences with on line, you could use CancerChat, our online forum.