Good evening.. I started out with stage 1 in 2011, which lasted about 7 years. It came back onto me with a vengeance and initially got attached to my right adrenal gland. Now I’m stage 4 and after almost bleeding to death, the doctor said they would “watch it”. Approximately 7 months later I lost my ability to talk or write. It was as if I had a stroke. My wife took me into the doctor and he was going to send me in for speech therapy. My wife then took me to the emergency room where they ran an MRI and found the melanoma had spread to my brain. The doctors tried to get me into Hospice but she stopped it. They did brain surgery and removed the mass and within a few weeks I could talk again. A PET scan showed melanoma in my lungs so they radiated my lungs which ultimately collapsed both lungs putting me on a respirator in the hospital for 30 days. I have been through virtually most of chemo including Keytruda and Opdivo.. I am suffering from the paralysis from my hips to my toes and my shoulders to my fingers.. My little fingers feel like they are frozen and I do my best to walk even though I only have a portion of my lungs. The pain can be intense. My last PET scan reflected no growth of the tumor on my adrenal gland. I’m not giving up to this monster and will do my best. I live in southern CA and managed to get to the City of Hope in Duarte. My oncologist has told me they are working on a vaccine which may be available in the next year. That being said, did those of you who suffered from this paralysis ever get rid of it? If so, was there a medication that worked? Thank you.. Rick
