› Forums › Cutaneous Melanoma Community › Just diagnosed
- This topic has 15 replies, 5 voices, and was last updated 13 years, 11 months ago by
Janner.
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- October 13, 2011 at 10:06 pm
This week I got the biopsy report. Both biopsies came out melanoma. This was a shock to me. My dad has been battling basal cell for 40 years, so I assumed that would be my diagnosis also. The good news is that it is in situ. I am trying to gather information. My dermatoligist removed the moles but I am going in next week to a skin cancer surgeon for surgery. I am not completely clear on what the surgery is except that it will be painful.What should I expect? Both moles were on my inner thighs but on different legs. Is that normal?
This week I got the biopsy report. Both biopsies came out melanoma. This was a shock to me. My dad has been battling basal cell for 40 years, so I assumed that would be my diagnosis also. The good news is that it is in situ. I am trying to gather information. My dermatoligist removed the moles but I am going in next week to a skin cancer surgeon for surgery. I am not completely clear on what the surgery is except that it will be painful.What should I expect? Both moles were on my inner thighs but on different legs. Is that normal? To have 2 moles that are both melanoma? Once I have had it will it come back? Sorry for all the questions.
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- October 13, 2011 at 10:55 pm
I am not an expert but being in situ is the best thing. My mel was found only after it went deeper. Thats the prob. I had 5 recurrances and am now on IPI bec. the last mel was inoperable. Not being the expert, they will want to see if any cancer cells have gone further. May I say that you must be vigilent from now on. Regular skin checks and CT scans. EARLY detection is the answer for any cancer. Good luck
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- October 13, 2011 at 10:55 pm
I am not an expert but being in situ is the best thing. My mel was found only after it went deeper. Thats the prob. I had 5 recurrances and am now on IPI bec. the last mel was inoperable. Not being the expert, they will want to see if any cancer cells have gone further. May I say that you must be vigilent from now on. Regular skin checks and CT scans. EARLY detection is the answer for any cancer. Good luck
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- October 13, 2011 at 10:55 pm
I am not an expert but being in situ is the best thing. My mel was found only after it went deeper. Thats the prob. I had 5 recurrances and am now on IPI bec. the last mel was inoperable. Not being the expert, they will want to see if any cancer cells have gone further. May I say that you must be vigilent from now on. Regular skin checks and CT scans. EARLY detection is the answer for any cancer. Good luck
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- October 13, 2011 at 11:15 pm
The surgeon will most likely recommend a "wide local excision" that removes some skin around the tumor sites, and maybe a sentinel lymph node biopsy. Hang in there, scary times I know.
I was diagnosed at stage IIIc (14 malignant nodes) in 2003, and I'm still here and healthy. Best wishes.
Rich
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- October 13, 2011 at 11:15 pm
The surgeon will most likely recommend a "wide local excision" that removes some skin around the tumor sites, and maybe a sentinel lymph node biopsy. Hang in there, scary times I know.
I was diagnosed at stage IIIc (14 malignant nodes) in 2003, and I'm still here and healthy. Best wishes.
Rich
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- October 13, 2011 at 11:15 pm
The surgeon will most likely recommend a "wide local excision" that removes some skin around the tumor sites, and maybe a sentinel lymph node biopsy. Hang in there, scary times I know.
I was diagnosed at stage IIIc (14 malignant nodes) in 2003, and I'm still here and healthy. Best wishes.
Rich
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- October 13, 2011 at 11:19 pm
Multiple occurrences are not the norm but they happen. If both of the mel's were in-situ then you have a very good prognosis. I'm not sure why you think it the surgery will be painful, the worse part is getting the injection to numb the area, after that it should be easy. The doc will probably do a wide excision to take more tissue just to make sure there are no cells lurking. There is no reason to think the melanoma will come back, you caught it early. What you will need to do is have you skin checked regularly and watch your sun exposure. Although you are like me, it hit you in a spot that really didn't get much exposure.
To learn more check this site under:
Understanding Your Melanoma Diagnosis
Good Luck.
Mary
Stage 3
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- October 13, 2011 at 11:19 pm
Multiple occurrences are not the norm but they happen. If both of the mel's were in-situ then you have a very good prognosis. I'm not sure why you think it the surgery will be painful, the worse part is getting the injection to numb the area, after that it should be easy. The doc will probably do a wide excision to take more tissue just to make sure there are no cells lurking. There is no reason to think the melanoma will come back, you caught it early. What you will need to do is have you skin checked regularly and watch your sun exposure. Although you are like me, it hit you in a spot that really didn't get much exposure.
To learn more check this site under:
Understanding Your Melanoma Diagnosis
Good Luck.
Mary
Stage 3
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- October 13, 2011 at 11:19 pm
Multiple occurrences are not the norm but they happen. If both of the mel's were in-situ then you have a very good prognosis. I'm not sure why you think it the surgery will be painful, the worse part is getting the injection to numb the area, after that it should be easy. The doc will probably do a wide excision to take more tissue just to make sure there are no cells lurking. There is no reason to think the melanoma will come back, you caught it early. What you will need to do is have you skin checked regularly and watch your sun exposure. Although you are like me, it hit you in a spot that really didn't get much exposure.
To learn more check this site under:
Understanding Your Melanoma Diagnosis
Good Luck.
Mary
Stage 3
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- October 14, 2011 at 12:09 am
Just wanted to say Good Luck and I'm glad you found your MM early. That sure does help. Of course you are worried. MM seems to do whatever it wants, so no one knows the outcome. But you have every reason to be positive. Hope your surgery goes good. Keep us informed. I will add you to my prayers. BethA 3/B
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- October 14, 2011 at 12:09 am
Just wanted to say Good Luck and I'm glad you found your MM early. That sure does help. Of course you are worried. MM seems to do whatever it wants, so no one knows the outcome. But you have every reason to be positive. Hope your surgery goes good. Keep us informed. I will add you to my prayers. BethA 3/B
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- October 14, 2011 at 12:09 am
Just wanted to say Good Luck and I'm glad you found your MM early. That sure does help. Of course you are worried. MM seems to do whatever it wants, so no one knows the outcome. But you have every reason to be positive. Hope your surgery goes good. Keep us informed. I will add you to my prayers. BethA 3/B
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- October 14, 2011 at 12:15 am
It's not typical to have more than one melanoma primary – about 8% of the melanoma population have more than one. (Sorry you get to join the multiple primary club, too). But if you have to join, in situ is where you want to be. That has almost a 100% cure rate (nothing is ever 100%).
Your next step is the WLE – wide local excision. This is where they take extra margins. With in situ, they want to have 5mm margins free of any melanoma. You'll likely double or triple your scar length – much depends on how tight the skin is. I don't consider WLE's particularly painful, just annoying. I don't handle tape well and stitches ALWAYS itch. But they numb you with lidocaine so the needle at first is really the only bad part. After the lidocaine wears off, some take meds for pain relief but that mostly depends on the person. I have used ice packs (on 20 minutes per hour) to help if I have any pain. I've had 7 or 8 WLE's over time and I personally consider them a big incovenience, but not much else.
You will not need a sentinel node biopsy (SNB). Someone mentioned that, but that is not done for in situ lesions. In situ means the lesion is confined entirely in the epidermis. Since there are no blood or lymph vessels in the epidermis, the melanoma basically lacks any method to spread.
Again, sorry you have to join us, but congratulations on catching these early. Do you also have a lot of atypical looking moles? You will need to continue to monitor your moles for CHANGE and also watch for those other types of pesky skin cancer. Regular trips to the derm!
Feel free to ask any questions that come up!
Best wishes,
Janner
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- October 14, 2011 at 12:15 am
It's not typical to have more than one melanoma primary – about 8% of the melanoma population have more than one. (Sorry you get to join the multiple primary club, too). But if you have to join, in situ is where you want to be. That has almost a 100% cure rate (nothing is ever 100%).
Your next step is the WLE – wide local excision. This is where they take extra margins. With in situ, they want to have 5mm margins free of any melanoma. You'll likely double or triple your scar length – much depends on how tight the skin is. I don't consider WLE's particularly painful, just annoying. I don't handle tape well and stitches ALWAYS itch. But they numb you with lidocaine so the needle at first is really the only bad part. After the lidocaine wears off, some take meds for pain relief but that mostly depends on the person. I have used ice packs (on 20 minutes per hour) to help if I have any pain. I've had 7 or 8 WLE's over time and I personally consider them a big incovenience, but not much else.
You will not need a sentinel node biopsy (SNB). Someone mentioned that, but that is not done for in situ lesions. In situ means the lesion is confined entirely in the epidermis. Since there are no blood or lymph vessels in the epidermis, the melanoma basically lacks any method to spread.
Again, sorry you have to join us, but congratulations on catching these early. Do you also have a lot of atypical looking moles? You will need to continue to monitor your moles for CHANGE and also watch for those other types of pesky skin cancer. Regular trips to the derm!
Feel free to ask any questions that come up!
Best wishes,
Janner
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- October 14, 2011 at 12:15 am
It's not typical to have more than one melanoma primary – about 8% of the melanoma population have more than one. (Sorry you get to join the multiple primary club, too). But if you have to join, in situ is where you want to be. That has almost a 100% cure rate (nothing is ever 100%).
Your next step is the WLE – wide local excision. This is where they take extra margins. With in situ, they want to have 5mm margins free of any melanoma. You'll likely double or triple your scar length – much depends on how tight the skin is. I don't consider WLE's particularly painful, just annoying. I don't handle tape well and stitches ALWAYS itch. But they numb you with lidocaine so the needle at first is really the only bad part. After the lidocaine wears off, some take meds for pain relief but that mostly depends on the person. I have used ice packs (on 20 minutes per hour) to help if I have any pain. I've had 7 or 8 WLE's over time and I personally consider them a big incovenience, but not much else.
You will not need a sentinel node biopsy (SNB). Someone mentioned that, but that is not done for in situ lesions. In situ means the lesion is confined entirely in the epidermis. Since there are no blood or lymph vessels in the epidermis, the melanoma basically lacks any method to spread.
Again, sorry you have to join us, but congratulations on catching these early. Do you also have a lot of atypical looking moles? You will need to continue to monitor your moles for CHANGE and also watch for those other types of pesky skin cancer. Regular trips to the derm!
Feel free to ask any questions that come up!
Best wishes,
Janner
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Tagged: cutaneous melanoma
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