murnaloo

I saw the dermatologist this week. The mole has not bled since before Christmas. He said it looks fine, but I will still have it removed on the 22nd. Just because the doctor said it looks fine doesn’t mean it is. I was told another mike was fine for a year and that turned out to be a melanoma. The 22nd can’t get here fast enough. 

Thank you! There are no TJs here in London, but a friend is visiting from the US soon, so I’ll ask her to bring me some. Good for you for teaching your kids sun sense from an early age. Wish we’d known better when I was a kid in the 1980s!

Thanks for the tip. I’ve never head of Supergoop but will check it out.

Thank you! I’m buying up all the Land’s End swimshirts I can get!

Thank you! I live in London, where we don’t get Neutrogena, so I stock up at Target when I visit my family in the US. I asked my dermo here in London what the best sunscreen was and she said Neutrogena. How do you feel about the sunscreen sticks? I love them, but do question whether I’m getting enough coverage – they just glide on to effortlessly!

Thank you, Sue.

Yes, still in London, where it has been VERY sunny this summer. While it’s nice to have a break from the grey and rain, I have gone through 10x as much sunscreen as usual for a summer.

The spot has shrunk, but has not gone away. I’ve got an appointment scheduled with the GP for the 29th, but as you know, this gives me no confidence. My next skin check with the dermatologist is in October. With the National Health Service, there is no insisting on a biopsy – I would have had my initial melanoma biopsied a year earlier if that was possible. So, I’m going to begin the long process of arguing with the GP that I need an urgent referral, then argue with the dermo that I need the spot biopsied. I’m exhausted just thinking about it. My dermo in the US would remove it even if he thought it was harmless because of the anxiety it causes me. Health care shouldn’t be this hard.

Hope you are well!

Oh, that’s horrible! That is why I panic about everything – a melanoma does not always come with a flashing warning sign. And, doctors make mistakes.

Thank you for the reply, Edwin. I was thinking the same thing, but having someone else say it is very helpful. I’ll watch the spot over the next week.

I admit I get quite impatient because I went to my GP here in London 3x over a year when I was worried about the mole that turned out to be melanoma. Each time they said it was fine and to just keep an eye on it, which I did, only to go back to the GP and be told the same thing. It was only when I went to visit my family at home in the US and saw a dermotologist there that it was taken seriously and diagnosed. I ended up having surgery, etc., in the US with no health insurance (as I am an ex-pat living in the UK). To say I now have trust issues with the UK’s health service is an understatement.

Thank you for the words of reason. Typically I'm very level-headed, but this caught me off-guard. I will put the googling away for the holidays. Thanks again!

Hi! I am so sorry for not replying after your thoughtful message! But, I wanted to let you know — better late than never — that it was incredibly helpful and I have re-read it several times when my melanoma anxiety kicks in. So, thank you again! I hope you are doing well and enjoying the holiday season in California! (BTW, I grew up in Texas, so I am familiar with the inability to live like a vampire! Now I live in London, where I fit in amongst all the other pale people.)