Jules

Hey Nancy,

My father had stage 1b melanoma on the back of his neck on the left side in 2003.  He followed up every 6 months with the derm and did everything else he was supposed to do but unfortunately in 2016 he had his left  supraclavicular node pop up out of nowhere that was melanoma (reoccurrence after 13 years NED) 

I truly hope this will not be the case for you but I am very glad to hear you’re getting it checked out.  Wishing you the best.

Jules 

Steven,

Looks like this triplet is being studied in a few clinical trials. Below is the info on tafinlar/Mekinist and Keytruda, while unfortunately it looks like your wife would be excluded from the trial itself because of prior systemic therapy, she may be able to get compassionate use. 

https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02130466?term=Dabrafenib&rank=59

good luck! I am sorry that with everything you both have to deal with you'll have to deal with obstacles with insurance too.

Hey there,

i am so sorry to hear of your diagnosis, glad you found this site as it is a wealth of information. My father had a full neck dissection last year as his sentinel node was almost completely taken over by melanoma. He was lucky enough to not need a drain and we took him home later that night, he ended up taking a few days off of work but that was it. I think if you can plan to do the surgery towards the end of the week and take a few days off you could most likely avoid short term disability. Everyone is different but I wish you well and hope you recover quickly. 

Hey there,

i am so sorry to hear of your diagnosis, glad you found this site as it is a wealth of information. My father had a full neck dissection last year as his sentinel node was almost completely taken over by melanoma. He was lucky enough to not need a drain and we took him home later that night, he ended up taking a few days off of work but that was it. I think if you can plan to do the surgery towards the end of the week and take a few days off you could most likely avoid short term disability. Everyone is different but I wish you well and hope you recover quickly. 

Hey there,

i am so sorry to hear of your diagnosis, glad you found this site as it is a wealth of information. My father had a full neck dissection last year as his sentinel node was almost completely taken over by melanoma. He was lucky enough to not need a drain and we took him home later that night, he ended up taking a few days off of work but that was it. I think if you can plan to do the surgery towards the end of the week and take a few days off you could most likely avoid short term disability. Everyone is different but I wish you well and hope you recover quickly. 

Hi Shawna,

Just wanted to share with you that last year I had terrible pain and a lump right near my pelvic bone. I thought it was a hernia and didn't even think of it being a node. Long story short I went to the ER and had a Ct scan and they sent me home because everything was clear- made me think because of the location it was a  ruptured cyst. A few days later the pain and swelling was s worse so I went to my OB and he touched the area and knew immediately that it was a lymph node and said it was infected because it was hot to the touch. Wrote me antibiotics and had me do a very  thorough ultrasound to confirm and make sure nothing else was going on. After the antibiotics the pain subsided but because of how close it is to my ovary and how swollen it got its considered chronic and comes and goes. It has never gotten as big as it did with the infection but I can still feel it over a year later. Not sure if this is applicable to your situation but I thought I would share. I am here as a care giver I do not have melanoma myself. 

Wishing you all the best 

Hi Shawna,

Just wanted to share with you that last year I had terrible pain and a lump right near my pelvic bone. I thought it was a hernia and didn't even think of it being a node. Long story short I went to the ER and had a Ct scan and they sent me home because everything was clear- made me think because of the location it was a  ruptured cyst. A few days later the pain and swelling was s worse so I went to my OB and he touched the area and knew immediately that it was a lymph node and said it was infected because it was hot to the touch. Wrote me antibiotics and had me do a very  thorough ultrasound to confirm and make sure nothing else was going on. After the antibiotics the pain subsided but because of how close it is to my ovary and how swollen it got its considered chronic and comes and goes. It has never gotten as big as it did with the infection but I can still feel it over a year later. Not sure if this is applicable to your situation but I thought I would share. I am here as a care giver I do not have melanoma myself. 

Wishing you all the best 

Hi Shawna,

Just wanted to share with you that last year I had terrible pain and a lump right near my pelvic bone. I thought it was a hernia and didn't even think of it being a node. Long story short I went to the ER and had a Ct scan and they sent me home because everything was clear- made me think because of the location it was a  ruptured cyst. A few days later the pain and swelling was s worse so I went to my OB and he touched the area and knew immediately that it was a lymph node and said it was infected because it was hot to the touch. Wrote me antibiotics and had me do a very  thorough ultrasound to confirm and make sure nothing else was going on. After the antibiotics the pain subsided but because of how close it is to my ovary and how swollen it got its considered chronic and comes and goes. It has never gotten as big as it did with the infection but I can still feel it over a year later. Not sure if this is applicable to your situation but I thought I would share. I am here as a care giver I do not have melanoma myself. 

Wishing you all the best 

Hey Celeste! 

I posted a few articles above as a reply to Ed, check them out. I'd love to hear your thoughts on it.

Hey Celeste! 

I posted a few articles above as a reply to Ed, check them out. I'd love to hear your thoughts on it.

Hey Celeste! 

I posted a few articles above as a reply to Ed, check them out. I'd love to hear your thoughts on it.

Another good article on the subject from Dr. Luke

http://www.curetoday.com/publications/cure/2016/melanoma-2016-2/working-at-the-speed-of-light-in-melanoma-advancements?p=4

Another good article on the subject from Dr. Luke

http://www.curetoday.com/publications/cure/2016/melanoma-2016-2/working-at-the-speed-of-light-in-melanoma-advancements?p=4

Another good article on the subject from Dr. Luke

http://www.curetoday.com/publications/cure/2016/melanoma-2016-2/working-at-the-speed-of-light-in-melanoma-advancements?p=4

http://www.onclive.com/web-exclusives/weber-compares-brafmek-immunotherapy-combos-in-melanoma

http://www.onclive.com/conference-coverage/asco-2016/longterm-data-deepen-dabrafenibtrametinib-benefit-in-melanoma

im glad we are finally seeing some analysis on different subsets of patients and as we know all these clinical trials are based on 100% BRAF positive patients 

hopefully if sequenced correctly all these incredible medications, including immunotherapies, could make melanoma a chronic illness for many patients.