Fresh Approaches for Treating Micro-Metastatic Melanoma Explored

Agree with you…that's why I chose ultrasound…didn't belive such a morbid procedure was necessary for such a microscopic amount I had in one lympnode. Only time will tell…

Agree with you…that's why I chose ultrasound…didn't belive such a morbid procedure was necessary for such a microscopic amount I had in one lympnode. Only time will tell…

Agree with you…that's why I chose ultrasound…didn't belive such a morbid procedure was necessary for such a microscopic amount I had in one lympnode. Only time will tell…

I had the full disection in August following two positive nodes for microscopic amounts of mel. On the fulldisection they removed 23 lymph nodes and one was found to have microscopic amountsof mel.

For a start, I'm not sure what this means exactly and whether it is good news (only one additonal +ve node – hooray!!) or whether it is bad news – jeepers, they found some more-oh no!! And, no one can tell me. The surgeon said one is better than more than one which wasn't much of an answer. But I cling to anything at this point in time because I am desperate to live just like we all are.

And, post op as I am now,I have mild lymphedema, have a weak L leg (lymph removed was inguinal), have a slow healing wound and am in a lot of pain intermittently. Now this may be a price to pay and a cheap one at that if my survival chances have increased. But as I understand it, they haven't. All it means is that it won't return to that site again.

My 5 year survival chance was rated at 48% pre procedure and remains the same post procedure.

They told me they'd put me on a trial to 'mop up' any mel cells still floating around my body. IF I amon the arm that gets the drugs rather than the sugar pills, I have just been informed by a good mate who is an oncologist that experts at a conference he is at in Madrid, Spain have discussed the trial (COMBI-AD) and believe it may be too toxic for most patients to tolerate.

Basically, looking back,maybe I should have just had the WLE and got on with life having PET scans every 4 months for five years. There is a lot to be said for being what is called treatment naive – I know that from my days working in HIV as a nurse decades ago. Every drug trial wants 'clean' subjects.

I think my experiences must be the sameas everyones' on here. Last night I was planning my (legal in Switzerland) voluntary euthanasia. Tonight I am researching the future in melanoma treatment and hoping I am around long enough to get on better drugs with improved longevity. Maybe I'll be one of the 48% or even better, I'll survive 20 years. I'm starting to think that maybe the experts don't know very much either.

I had the full disection in August following two positive nodes for microscopic amounts of mel. On the fulldisection they removed 23 lymph nodes and one was found to have microscopic amountsof mel.

For a start, I'm not sure what this means exactly and whether it is good news (only one additonal +ve node – hooray!!) or whether it is bad news – jeepers, they found some more-oh no!! And, no one can tell me. The surgeon said one is better than more than one which wasn't much of an answer. But I cling to anything at this point in time because I am desperate to live just like we all are.

And, post op as I am now,I have mild lymphedema, have a weak L leg (lymph removed was inguinal), have a slow healing wound and am in a lot of pain intermittently. Now this may be a price to pay and a cheap one at that if my survival chances have increased. But as I understand it, they haven't. All it means is that it won't return to that site again.

My 5 year survival chance was rated at 48% pre procedure and remains the same post procedure.

They told me they'd put me on a trial to 'mop up' any mel cells still floating around my body. IF I amon the arm that gets the drugs rather than the sugar pills, I have just been informed by a good mate who is an oncologist that experts at a conference he is at in Madrid, Spain have discussed the trial (COMBI-AD) and believe it may be too toxic for most patients to tolerate.

Basically, looking back,maybe I should have just had the WLE and got on with life having PET scans every 4 months for five years. There is a lot to be said for being what is called treatment naive – I know that from my days working in HIV as a nurse decades ago. Every drug trial wants 'clean' subjects.

I think my experiences must be the sameas everyones' on here. Last night I was planning my (legal in Switzerland) voluntary euthanasia. Tonight I am researching the future in melanoma treatment and hoping I am around long enough to get on better drugs with improved longevity. Maybe I'll be one of the 48% or even better, I'll survive 20 years. I'm starting to think that maybe the experts don't know very much either.

I had the full disection in August following two positive nodes for microscopic amounts of mel. On the fulldisection they removed 23 lymph nodes and one was found to have microscopic amountsof mel.

For a start, I'm not sure what this means exactly and whether it is good news (only one additonal +ve node – hooray!!) or whether it is bad news – jeepers, they found some more-oh no!! And, no one can tell me. The surgeon said one is better than more than one which wasn't much of an answer. But I cling to anything at this point in time because I am desperate to live just like we all are.

And, post op as I am now,I have mild lymphedema, have a weak L leg (lymph removed was inguinal), have a slow healing wound and am in a lot of pain intermittently. Now this may be a price to pay and a cheap one at that if my survival chances have increased. But as I understand it, they haven't. All it means is that it won't return to that site again.

My 5 year survival chance was rated at 48% pre procedure and remains the same post procedure.

They told me they'd put me on a trial to 'mop up' any mel cells still floating around my body. IF I amon the arm that gets the drugs rather than the sugar pills, I have just been informed by a good mate who is an oncologist that experts at a conference he is at in Madrid, Spain have discussed the trial (COMBI-AD) and believe it may be too toxic for most patients to tolerate.

Basically, looking back,maybe I should have just had the WLE and got on with life having PET scans every 4 months for five years. There is a lot to be said for being what is called treatment naive – I know that from my days working in HIV as a nurse decades ago. Every drug trial wants 'clean' subjects.

I think my experiences must be the sameas everyones' on here. Last night I was planning my (legal in Switzerland) voluntary euthanasia. Tonight I am researching the future in melanoma treatment and hoping I am around long enough to get on better drugs with improved longevity. Maybe I'll be one of the 48% or even better, I'll survive 20 years. I'm starting to think that maybe the experts don't know very much either.