Possible Lung Mets

So sorry about that but lets hope it is just a pseudo tumor and not malignant! OR did you have a pet scan done 2 months ago that indicated a positive reading and is this a follow up to confirm the diagnosis? I note you initially had melanoma in the toe, which was surgically removed some 5 years previously – was that your primary Mel?

This is my experience and may not necessarily work for you:

I had a primary (mole) in 2006 on my right ear lobe that was removed. It was claimed to be in-situ. It metastasized to the middle lobe of my right lung in 2011 and was resected (single tumor but pretty large at 20mm by 30mm) I had absolutely no treatment after that (by choice) and have been NED ever since and live a perfectly normal life. I never think of it and even forget to go for my quarterly check-ups now – I go every 6 months. Had a scare in July when a Pet Scan was done, they operated and removed the top right lobe of my lung but it was found to be a pseudo-tumor thus the NED status remaining. It was a false possitive. I had the op in August and was resuming my daily walk of 8 KM 2 weeks later, having started with 2 KM per day 2 days after being discharged from hospital.

If it is not multiple tumors I would say have the thing removed surgically. I have no regrets and unless there are compelling reasons for not going the surgical route as we all have different diagnosis, I would opt for the operation and avoid the chemical treatments if you can.

I really wish you all the best going forward and hope that whatever route you follow, will be beneficial. Fight the beast!

So sorry about that but lets hope it is just a pseudo tumor and not malignant! OR did you have a pet scan done 2 months ago that indicated a positive reading and is this a follow up to confirm the diagnosis? I note you initially had melanoma in the toe, which was surgically removed some 5 years previously – was that your primary Mel?

This is my experience and may not necessarily work for you:

I had a primary (mole) in 2006 on my right ear lobe that was removed. It was claimed to be in-situ. It metastasized to the middle lobe of my right lung in 2011 and was resected (single tumor but pretty large at 20mm by 30mm) I had absolutely no treatment after that (by choice) and have been NED ever since and live a perfectly normal life. I never think of it and even forget to go for my quarterly check-ups now – I go every 6 months. Had a scare in July when a Pet Scan was done, they operated and removed the top right lobe of my lung but it was found to be a pseudo-tumor thus the NED status remaining. It was a false possitive. I had the op in August and was resuming my daily walk of 8 KM 2 weeks later, having started with 2 KM per day 2 days after being discharged from hospital.

If it is not multiple tumors I would say have the thing removed surgically. I have no regrets and unless there are compelling reasons for not going the surgical route as we all have different diagnosis, I would opt for the operation and avoid the chemical treatments if you can.

I really wish you all the best going forward and hope that whatever route you follow, will be beneficial. Fight the beast!

So sorry about that but lets hope it is just a pseudo tumor and not malignant! OR did you have a pet scan done 2 months ago that indicated a positive reading and is this a follow up to confirm the diagnosis? I note you initially had melanoma in the toe, which was surgically removed some 5 years previously – was that your primary Mel?

This is my experience and may not necessarily work for you:

I had a primary (mole) in 2006 on my right ear lobe that was removed. It was claimed to be in-situ. It metastasized to the middle lobe of my right lung in 2011 and was resected (single tumor but pretty large at 20mm by 30mm) I had absolutely no treatment after that (by choice) and have been NED ever since and live a perfectly normal life. I never think of it and even forget to go for my quarterly check-ups now – I go every 6 months. Had a scare in July when a Pet Scan was done, they operated and removed the top right lobe of my lung but it was found to be a pseudo-tumor thus the NED status remaining. It was a false possitive. I had the op in August and was resuming my daily walk of 8 KM 2 weeks later, having started with 2 KM per day 2 days after being discharged from hospital.

If it is not multiple tumors I would say have the thing removed surgically. I have no regrets and unless there are compelling reasons for not going the surgical route as we all have different diagnosis, I would opt for the operation and avoid the chemical treatments if you can.

I really wish you all the best going forward and hope that whatever route you follow, will be beneficial. Fight the beast!

So sorry about that but lets hope it is just a pseudo tumor and not malignant! OR did you have a pet scan done 2 months ago that indicated a positive reading and is this a follow up to confirm the diagnosis? I note you initially had melanoma in the toe, which was surgically removed some 5 years previously – was that your primary Mel?

This is my experience and may not necessarily work for you:

I had a primary (mole) in 2006 on my right ear lobe that was removed. It was claimed to be in-situ. It metastasized to the middle lobe of my right lung in 2011 and was resected (single tumor but pretty large at 20mm by 30mm) I had absolutely no treatment after that (by choice) and have been NED ever since and live a perfectly normal life. I never think of it and even forget to go for my quarterly check-ups now – I go every 6 months. Had a scare in July when a Pet Scan was done, they operated and removed the top right lobe of my lung but it was found to be a pseudo-tumor thus the NED status remaining. It was a false possitive. I had the op in August and was resuming my daily walk of 8 KM 2 weeks later, having started with 2 KM per day 2 days after being discharged from hospital.

If it is not multiple tumors I would say have the thing removed surgically. I have no regrets and unless there are compelling reasons for not going the surgical route as we all have different diagnosis, I would opt for the operation and avoid the chemical treatments if you can.

I really wish you all the best going forward and hope that whatever route you follow, will be beneficial. Fight the beast!

So sorry about that but lets hope it is just a pseudo tumor and not malignant! OR did you have a pet scan done 2 months ago that indicated a positive reading and is this a follow up to confirm the diagnosis? I note you initially had melanoma in the toe, which was surgically removed some 5 years previously – was that your primary Mel?

This is my experience and may not necessarily work for you:

I had a primary (mole) in 2006 on my right ear lobe that was removed. It was claimed to be in-situ. It metastasized to the middle lobe of my right lung in 2011 and was resected (single tumor but pretty large at 20mm by 30mm) I had absolutely no treatment after that (by choice) and have been NED ever since and live a perfectly normal life. I never think of it and even forget to go for my quarterly check-ups now – I go every 6 months. Had a scare in July when a Pet Scan was done, they operated and removed the top right lobe of my lung but it was found to be a pseudo-tumor thus the NED status remaining. It was a false possitive. I had the op in August and was resuming my daily walk of 8 KM 2 weeks later, having started with 2 KM per day 2 days after being discharged from hospital.

If it is not multiple tumors I would say have the thing removed surgically. I have no regrets and unless there are compelling reasons for not going the surgical route as we all have different diagnosis, I would opt for the operation and avoid the chemical treatments if you can.

I really wish you all the best going forward and hope that whatever route you follow, will be beneficial. Fight the beast!

So sorry about that but lets hope it is just a pseudo tumor and not malignant! OR did you have a pet scan done 2 months ago that indicated a positive reading and is this a follow up to confirm the diagnosis? I note you initially had melanoma in the toe, which was surgically removed some 5 years previously – was that your primary Mel?

This is my experience and may not necessarily work for you:

I had a primary (mole) in 2006 on my right ear lobe that was removed. It was claimed to be in-situ. It metastasized to the middle lobe of my right lung in 2011 and was resected (single tumor but pretty large at 20mm by 30mm) I had absolutely no treatment after that (by choice) and have been NED ever since and live a perfectly normal life. I never think of it and even forget to go for my quarterly check-ups now – I go every 6 months. Had a scare in July when a Pet Scan was done, they operated and removed the top right lobe of my lung but it was found to be a pseudo-tumor thus the NED status remaining. It was a false possitive. I had the op in August and was resuming my daily walk of 8 KM 2 weeks later, having started with 2 KM per day 2 days after being discharged from hospital.

If it is not multiple tumors I would say have the thing removed surgically. I have no regrets and unless there are compelling reasons for not going the surgical route as we all have different diagnosis, I would opt for the operation and avoid the chemical treatments if you can.

I really wish you all the best going forward and hope that whatever route you follow, will be beneficial. Fight the beast!

So sorry about that but lets hope it is just a pseudo tumor and not malignant! OR did you have a pet scan done 2 months ago that indicated a positive reading and is this a follow up to confirm the diagnosis? I note you initially had melanoma in the toe, which was surgically removed some 5 years previously – was that your primary Mel?

This is my experience and may not necessarily work for you:

I had a primary (mole) in 2006 on my right ear lobe that was removed. It was claimed to be in-situ. It metastasized to the middle lobe of my right lung in 2011 and was resected (single tumor but pretty large at 20mm by 30mm) I had absolutely no treatment after that (by choice) and have been NED ever since and live a perfectly normal life. I never think of it and even forget to go for my quarterly check-ups now – I go every 6 months. Had a scare in July when a Pet Scan was done, they operated and removed the top right lobe of my lung but it was found to be a pseudo-tumor thus the NED status remaining. It was a false possitive. I had the op in August and was resuming my daily walk of 8 KM 2 weeks later, having started with 2 KM per day 2 days after being discharged from hospital.

If it is not multiple tumors I would say have the thing removed surgically. I have no regrets and unless there are compelling reasons for not going the surgical route as we all have different diagnosis, I would opt for the operation and avoid the chemical treatments if you can.

I really wish you all the best going forward and hope that whatever route you follow, will be beneficial. Fight the beast!

So sorry about that but lets hope it is just a pseudo tumor and not malignant! OR did you have a pet scan done 2 months ago that indicated a positive reading and is this a follow up to confirm the diagnosis? I note you initially had melanoma in the toe, which was surgically removed some 5 years previously – was that your primary Mel?

This is my experience and may not necessarily work for you:

I had a primary (mole) in 2006 on my right ear lobe that was removed. It was claimed to be in-situ. It metastasized to the middle lobe of my right lung in 2011 and was resected (single tumor but pretty large at 20mm by 30mm) I had absolutely no treatment after that (by choice) and have been NED ever since and live a perfectly normal life. I never think of it and even forget to go for my quarterly check-ups now – I go every 6 months. Had a scare in July when a Pet Scan was done, they operated and removed the top right lobe of my lung but it was found to be a pseudo-tumor thus the NED status remaining. It was a false possitive. I had the op in August and was resuming my daily walk of 8 KM 2 weeks later, having started with 2 KM per day 2 days after being discharged from hospital.

If it is not multiple tumors I would say have the thing removed surgically. I have no regrets and unless there are compelling reasons for not going the surgical route as we all have different diagnosis, I would opt for the operation and avoid the chemical treatments if you can.

I really wish you all the best going forward and hope that whatever route you follow, will be beneficial. Fight the beast!

So sorry about that but lets hope it is just a pseudo tumor and not malignant! OR did you have a pet scan done 2 months ago that indicated a positive reading and is this a follow up to confirm the diagnosis? I note you initially had melanoma in the toe, which was surgically removed some 5 years previously – was that your primary Mel?

This is my experience and may not necessarily work for you:

I had a primary (mole) in 2006 on my right ear lobe that was removed. It was claimed to be in-situ. It metastasized to the middle lobe of my right lung in 2011 and was resected (single tumor but pretty large at 20mm by 30mm) I had absolutely no treatment after that (by choice) and have been NED ever since and live a perfectly normal life. I never think of it and even forget to go for my quarterly check-ups now – I go every 6 months. Had a scare in July when a Pet Scan was done, they operated and removed the top right lobe of my lung but it was found to be a pseudo-tumor thus the NED status remaining. It was a false possitive. I had the op in August and was resuming my daily walk of 8 KM 2 weeks later, having started with 2 KM per day 2 days after being discharged from hospital.

If it is not multiple tumors I would say have the thing removed surgically. I have no regrets and unless there are compelling reasons for not going the surgical route as we all have different diagnosis, I would opt for the operation and avoid the chemical treatments if you can.

I really wish you all the best going forward and hope that whatever route you follow, will be beneficial. Fight the beast!

Sandy, how large is the possible lung met?

Since every case is slightly different I don't know if I can say what the typical approach is.  

But In my case on my scans they found 8 lesions/possible mets across both lungs. Because there were that many, in the case that it turned out to be melanoma, they wouldn't be recommending surgery but instead systemic treatment, because the assumption was that with that many (8) there was probably more disease that they weren't seeing. But they coulnd't start systemic treatment without confirmation – biopsy. Due to the small size of the lesions (largest was 9mm) they weren't confident they could do a (non-surgical) needle biopsy, so they did a Video Assisted Thoracic Surgery (VATS) on one lung to confirm. After that, as it turned out to be metatstatic in my case, I began systemic therapy (IL-2). 

With a single lung lession only, I believe that surgical removal can be a treatment option. So, if the current suspcious lesion is large enough, maybe they could do a needle biopsy to confirm before going further (e.g., surgical resection?) The other choice you may be given (if disease is confirmed by biopsy) would be a systemic treatment like Yervoy, or perhaps a clinical trial. You'd need to discuss with your oncologist (hopefully a melanoma specailist — it sounds like your doc does specialize in melanoma?)

Good luck, Kyle

Sandy, how large is the possible lung met?

Since every case is slightly different I don't know if I can say what the typical approach is.  

But In my case on my scans they found 8 lesions/possible mets across both lungs. Because there were that many, in the case that it turned out to be melanoma, they wouldn't be recommending surgery but instead systemic treatment, because the assumption was that with that many (8) there was probably more disease that they weren't seeing. But they coulnd't start systemic treatment without confirmation – biopsy. Due to the small size of the lesions (largest was 9mm) they weren't confident they could do a (non-surgical) needle biopsy, so they did a Video Assisted Thoracic Surgery (VATS) on one lung to confirm. After that, as it turned out to be metatstatic in my case, I began systemic therapy (IL-2). 

With a single lung lession only, I believe that surgical removal can be a treatment option. So, if the current suspcious lesion is large enough, maybe they could do a needle biopsy to confirm before going further (e.g., surgical resection?) The other choice you may be given (if disease is confirmed by biopsy) would be a systemic treatment like Yervoy, or perhaps a clinical trial. You'd need to discuss with your oncologist (hopefully a melanoma specailist — it sounds like your doc does specialize in melanoma?)

Good luck, Kyle

Sandy, how large is the possible lung met?

Since every case is slightly different I don't know if I can say what the typical approach is.  

But In my case on my scans they found 8 lesions/possible mets across both lungs. Because there were that many, in the case that it turned out to be melanoma, they wouldn't be recommending surgery but instead systemic treatment, because the assumption was that with that many (8) there was probably more disease that they weren't seeing. But they coulnd't start systemic treatment without confirmation – biopsy. Due to the small size of the lesions (largest was 9mm) they weren't confident they could do a (non-surgical) needle biopsy, so they did a Video Assisted Thoracic Surgery (VATS) on one lung to confirm. After that, as it turned out to be metatstatic in my case, I began systemic therapy (IL-2). 

With a single lung lession only, I believe that surgical removal can be a treatment option. So, if the current suspcious lesion is large enough, maybe they could do a needle biopsy to confirm before going further (e.g., surgical resection?) The other choice you may be given (if disease is confirmed by biopsy) would be a systemic treatment like Yervoy, or perhaps a clinical trial. You'd need to discuss with your oncologist (hopefully a melanoma specailist — it sounds like your doc does specialize in melanoma?)

Good luck, Kyle