oliverjterry

My first biopsy involved a follow-up with a plastic surgeon where they removed the skin around with a 1cm margin. This is standard procedure which removes all melanoma in the overwhelming majority of cases.

If your melanoma is "thin" (<1mm, essentially doesn't "pierce" your skin) then there is a high chance it is isolated, and generally you should not have too much to worry about if you haven't had other melanomas in the past. Be aware of your family history, as some melanoma is hereditary.

Stay positive! There is probably nothing to worry about, just stay aware!

Hi there. I'm not a doctor, but a patient, recently made aware that I have at least stage III melanoma. As you may or may not know, 0.5mm with no ulceration is not that "bad" as far as melanoma goes. (For what that's worth) The consultation for further excision is likely to remove the appropriate margins around the site of the melanoma – for mine, they took an addition 1cm of skin both times, as that has been shown to prevent recurrence in an overwhelming majority of cases. In the absence of anything else, your melanoma would be a Stage I.

I will tell you what my doctor told me – that until you have further information, there isn't really anything that you can do. It really sucks to be uncertain and wait. My advice is to stay positive and realistic. Whatever happens will happen, although you should definitely work hard to stay on top of your care. Definitely bring up the lymph nodes to your doctor, though – they may be related, or they may be something else.