Indymom

Jennifer-very sorry you are dealing with this. Yes, bruising & lumps are certainly related to melanoma. This is exactly what my son experienced 22 months after clear labs from WLE and 5 lymph nodes removed. One bruised ‘lump’ was extracted and biopsied, which came back positive for melanoma & put him at stage IV in 2014. These lumps were referred to as subcutaneous tumors. Glad you are seeking treatment at MD Anderson. Be prepared for a brain MRI in the near future to rule out brain mets. There are treatments that will melt away these tumors. You are definitely at the right site for experienced melanoma survivors. In my opinion the more you educate yourself about melanoma and become an advocate for your own health the better. Hang tough, it’s a rough battle, but there are many, many, many people walking around today with no evidence of the disease after a Stage IV diagnosis many years ago.

Be sure to tell the dermatologist-surgeon-and oncologist about your bruises, as these could be caused by subcutaneous tumors.  Not trying to scare you, but unusual bruising followed by a lump under the bruise was my son’s first symptom of recurrence 22 months after initial Stage IIA diagnosis.  

Time is important when it comes to melanoma. Do you know if your initial melanoma tumor was BRAF positive? If it wasn’t tested, and an MRI shows suspect melanoma, the next step would be to get a biopsy. A needle biopsy now would be able to determine if a suspect lump is melanoma. With a melanoma history I would personally skip the general practitioner for skin concerns & get onboard with a dermatologist.

My son had United Healthcare & it was outstanding.