looptwelve

Depth isn't given in MIS, it is only given for invasive melanoma. As far as detail in a path report, this actually has quite a bit. For the most part it doesn't really matter though– what matters is that it was in situ so it cannot spread, and your margins were likely clear so you can go ahead and close the book on this matter. Only thing to worry about now is to remain vigilant for other primaries in the future.

I say this as a fellow in situ patient. I spent many months obsessing over it until I realized there is really nothing to obsess over besides future surveillance.

Depth isn't given in MIS, it is only given for invasive melanoma. As far as detail in a path report, this actually has quite a bit. For the most part it doesn't really matter though– what matters is that it was in situ so it cannot spread, and your margins were likely clear so you can go ahead and close the book on this matter. Only thing to worry about now is to remain vigilant for other primaries in the future.

I say this as a fellow in situ patient. I spent many months obsessing over it until I realized there is really nothing to obsess over besides future surveillance.

Depth isn't given in MIS, it is only given for invasive melanoma. As far as detail in a path report, this actually has quite a bit. For the most part it doesn't really matter though– what matters is that it was in situ so it cannot spread, and your margins were likely clear so you can go ahead and close the book on this matter. Only thing to worry about now is to remain vigilant for other primaries in the future.

I say this as a fellow in situ patient. I spent many months obsessing over it until I realized there is really nothing to obsess over besides future surveillance.

I'm in a similar position as you, my friend. My GP found a suspicious mole back in February, and I got it biopsied and it came back as melanoma in situ. It was removed and I was told margins were clear and just do follow up visits every 6 months. I'll probably do every 4 months just because I'm paranoid.

You and I are similar in that we are in our 30's and having a cancer scare. No one wants to hear the word cancer when they're around the prime age of their life. It's scary and it brings mortality to your face when you aren't really ready to deal with it.

I received the news it was melanoma 3 weeks ago, and I still panic about it just about every day. We should both take some solace in the fact that it was caught before it was even invasive, and also that there's only a ~10% chance that you'll even have a melanoma recurrence. If you do have a recurrence, it will likely be as minor as your first. There are alot of scary stories on here and around the internet, and they've fueled my worry over the last couple weeks. I do my best just to tell myself that those cases are pretty rare and that yours and mine are far more common. If there aren't any other hidden melanomas on our bodies, we are ~95-98% (some sources even say 99% or 100%) likely to be alive in 10 years. You really can't ask for better odds than that, especially in any sort of cancer situation. You're probably just as likely to die in a different fashion with those odds.

Just be diligent with watching your moles, report to your dermatologist as often as you are told to, and keep an eye on your lymph nodes just for extra caution. There's nothing else you can do besides that, and to hope you're in the 95-100%.

And tell all your friends and family to keep an eye on their nevi as well! 

Andrew

I'm in a similar position as you, my friend. My GP found a suspicious mole back in February, and I got it biopsied and it came back as melanoma in situ. It was removed and I was told margins were clear and just do follow up visits every 6 months. I'll probably do every 4 months just because I'm paranoid.

You and I are similar in that we are in our 30's and having a cancer scare. No one wants to hear the word cancer when they're around the prime age of their life. It's scary and it brings mortality to your face when you aren't really ready to deal with it.

I received the news it was melanoma 3 weeks ago, and I still panic about it just about every day. We should both take some solace in the fact that it was caught before it was even invasive, and also that there's only a ~10% chance that you'll even have a melanoma recurrence. If you do have a recurrence, it will likely be as minor as your first. There are alot of scary stories on here and around the internet, and they've fueled my worry over the last couple weeks. I do my best just to tell myself that those cases are pretty rare and that yours and mine are far more common. If there aren't any other hidden melanomas on our bodies, we are ~95-98% (some sources even say 99% or 100%) likely to be alive in 10 years. You really can't ask for better odds than that, especially in any sort of cancer situation. You're probably just as likely to die in a different fashion with those odds.

Just be diligent with watching your moles, report to your dermatologist as often as you are told to, and keep an eye on your lymph nodes just for extra caution. There's nothing else you can do besides that, and to hope you're in the 95-100%.

And tell all your friends and family to keep an eye on their nevi as well! 

Andrew

I'm in a similar position as you, my friend. My GP found a suspicious mole back in February, and I got it biopsied and it came back as melanoma in situ. It was removed and I was told margins were clear and just do follow up visits every 6 months. I'll probably do every 4 months just because I'm paranoid.

You and I are similar in that we are in our 30's and having a cancer scare. No one wants to hear the word cancer when they're around the prime age of their life. It's scary and it brings mortality to your face when you aren't really ready to deal with it.

I received the news it was melanoma 3 weeks ago, and I still panic about it just about every day. We should both take some solace in the fact that it was caught before it was even invasive, and also that there's only a ~10% chance that you'll even have a melanoma recurrence. If you do have a recurrence, it will likely be as minor as your first. There are alot of scary stories on here and around the internet, and they've fueled my worry over the last couple weeks. I do my best just to tell myself that those cases are pretty rare and that yours and mine are far more common. If there aren't any other hidden melanomas on our bodies, we are ~95-98% (some sources even say 99% or 100%) likely to be alive in 10 years. You really can't ask for better odds than that, especially in any sort of cancer situation. You're probably just as likely to die in a different fashion with those odds.

Just be diligent with watching your moles, report to your dermatologist as often as you are told to, and keep an eye on your lymph nodes just for extra caution. There's nothing else you can do besides that, and to hope you're in the 95-100%.

And tell all your friends and family to keep an eye on their nevi as well! 

Andrew

As a fellow Texan, y'all are in my thoughts. Nothing but good vibes for you.

As a fellow Texan, y'all are in my thoughts. Nothing but good vibes for you.

As a fellow Texan, y'all are in my thoughts. Nothing but good vibes for you.

No problem. I'm 30 years old. I'm sure my melanoma anxiety is also being fueled by a 30-year-old life crisis.

I had basically the opposite experience with friends and family– everyone seemed to know someone who has had a melanoma, and they're all alive, kicking, and well. Most of them just had one occurence and it was gone and forgotten. One is currently in Stage 3, but her melanoma was deep, ulcerated, and her dermatologist ignored it for 3 years until it got to that point. So it seems like it was given plenty of time to get that point and had it been taken care of when it first started to darken and grow, it likely would've been at least a Stage 1 or Stage 2 removal.

As for your friend who ha a friend with a mole and died a year later– you shouldn't panic unless you know the situation. She very well may have not found her melanoma until it was at a dire point. Maybe she didn't find it until it was deep, ulcerated, and had already spread to nodes and organs. Some people don't find their melanoma until it's too late, which is very unlikely in your case. As you'll commonly see around here, every melanoma case is different so try not to apply every case to your own unless it's similar in staging.

Andrew

No problem. I'm 30 years old. I'm sure my melanoma anxiety is also being fueled by a 30-year-old life crisis.

I had basically the opposite experience with friends and family– everyone seemed to know someone who has had a melanoma, and they're all alive, kicking, and well. Most of them just had one occurence and it was gone and forgotten. One is currently in Stage 3, but her melanoma was deep, ulcerated, and her dermatologist ignored it for 3 years until it got to that point. So it seems like it was given plenty of time to get that point and had it been taken care of when it first started to darken and grow, it likely would've been at least a Stage 1 or Stage 2 removal.

As for your friend who ha a friend with a mole and died a year later– you shouldn't panic unless you know the situation. She very well may have not found her melanoma until it was at a dire point. Maybe she didn't find it until it was deep, ulcerated, and had already spread to nodes and organs. Some people don't find their melanoma until it's too late, which is very unlikely in your case. As you'll commonly see around here, every melanoma case is different so try not to apply every case to your own unless it's similar in staging.

Andrew

No problem. I'm 30 years old. I'm sure my melanoma anxiety is also being fueled by a 30-year-old life crisis.

I had basically the opposite experience with friends and family– everyone seemed to know someone who has had a melanoma, and they're all alive, kicking, and well. Most of them just had one occurence and it was gone and forgotten. One is currently in Stage 3, but her melanoma was deep, ulcerated, and her dermatologist ignored it for 3 years until it got to that point. So it seems like it was given plenty of time to get that point and had it been taken care of when it first started to darken and grow, it likely would've been at least a Stage 1 or Stage 2 removal.

As for your friend who ha a friend with a mole and died a year later– you shouldn't panic unless you know the situation. She very well may have not found her melanoma until it was at a dire point. Maybe she didn't find it until it was deep, ulcerated, and had already spread to nodes and organs. Some people don't find their melanoma until it's too late, which is very unlikely in your case. As you'll commonly see around here, every melanoma case is different so try not to apply every case to your own unless it's similar in staging.

Andrew