My Story So Far

So, I turned up at the walk in clinic, Aug 2014, with an annoying mole that was now itching, I suffer from eczema so itching skin is normal, this wasn't responding to the normal eczema cream. Dr Cruz took a needle biopsy and this is where my journey started, it turned out to be melanoma, this was followed by a WLE and SLNB, Dr White and Dr Biberdorf were excellent, they took 5 lymph nodes and I was left with 29 staples. Margins were clear and all lymph nodes were clear, so I met my Dermatologist, Dr Kenny who explained that I had superficial spreading melanoma with a nodule (the more worrying portion), 3.9mm deep and was lucky as everything was clear. He would physically monitor me for the next few years at 3 month intervals, so this became part of my normal routine, every 3 months Dr Kenny would examine me from head to toe for dodgy moles. The first sign that everything was not ok was approximately one year later with the rapid appearance ( this came up within a couple of days) of a small hard lump on one of my left ribs, the needle biopsy was negative for melanoma, it was put down as a small hematoma, which did shrink back after a couple of weeks. However in August 2016 this re-appeared along with a nearby swollen lymph node, this time the biopsies confirmed melanoma, I was now officially Stage III. What followed over the next few months was a flurry of appointments, hospital visits, scans and testing. Initially I was prepped for a lymphadenectomy with Dr Biberdorf, however following the PET scan I moved up to Stage IV with the discovery of multiple 'hot spots/tumours' in my liver, lungs, potentially bones (sternum and a couple of vertebrae) and surgery was no longer an option. So I opted for the biggest stick available, turned down the Kertuda option in Victoria, BC and we relocated to Vancouver, BC, lucked out on accommodation and I started on the extended access clinical trial for Ipi/Nivo on the 1st December 2016 under the superb guidance of Dr Kerry Savage and her team. I managed to work through the first round, some minor issues with skin and fatigue. The second round knocked me for six, it was a memorable Christmas and New Year with severe fatigue, pneumonitis and skin issues, a bright red back from neck to waist. Dr Savage prescribed prednisone, 75mg, wow did it work, everything cleared within a few days and I was now flying, however I missed my Ipi/nivo third round, it took a month to wean me off the cortosteriods and I collected another expert for my team, Dr Bourdain the Pulmonologist who is now monitoring my lungs, regular pulmonary testing, X-Ray and CT. So round four of the trial happened mid February with no significant issues, my 3 month scan occurred a week after the Ipi/nivo infusion and showed good results, overall reduced tumour load, so I moved onto the maintenance schedule of nivo every 2 weeks, all going well until my heart attack!
Yup, I suffered a heart attack. It appeared as severe heartburn, sore left elbow and tingling fingers over about 20 mins. It happened to be the day before an infusion so I was at the cancer agency between bloodwork and onc consult. I mentioned it in my consult meeting, Dr Savage arranged for me to visit emergency and I was admitted and left 2 days later with a stent, bag of additional drugs and a new expert on the team, Dr Tsang, Cardiologist. As you can imagine it was a lot more involved, but the bottom line is the heart issue is not related to the clinical trial, it's down to a partially blocked artery, apparently my cholesterol of 5.2 was more of an issue than I appreciated, despite normal blood pressure, 120/80, resting heartbeat of 65 and regular exercise, gym most days, walking regularly and cycling up to 120km per week, who knew. I happened to be in the right place when it occurred and I'm now back on the trial bandwagon having missed one maintenance infusion. My 2 month scans are due next week, along with my cardiology consult and my next infusion, so it's full steam ahead.