robertgbirch

Mark – I had a melanoma removed in 2010 – at 0.35 mm very similar to yours. On sunscreen, the medical advice I was given was that it would have little impact on the recurrence of melanoma but it does reduce the risk of other skin cancers. I live in a very sunny place and so, for the first few months, I applied sunscreen every morning and no matter how much care I took it would make its way to my eyes, which is not fun. I also avoided going out in the sun. These days I’m more relaxed and only put on sunscreen if I know I am going to be in the outside for a prolonged period and I regularly go out without sunscreen early in the morning or late afternoon. The psychology of an early stage melanoma is complex and it’s too easy to let it dominate your thoughts. The good news is that time helps put it all into perspective – Good luck with whatever you decide to do.   Robert

Mark – I had a melanoma removed in 2010 – at 0.35 mm very similar to yours. On sunscreen, the medical advice I was given was that it would have little impact on the recurrence of melanoma but it does reduce the risk of other skin cancers. I live in a very sunny place and so, for the first few months, I applied sunscreen every morning and no matter how much care I took it would make its way to my eyes, which is not fun. I also avoided going out in the sun. These days I’m more relaxed and only put on sunscreen if I know I am going to be in the outside for a prolonged period and I regularly go out without sunscreen early in the morning or late afternoon. The psychology of an early stage melanoma is complex and it’s too easy to let it dominate your thoughts. The good news is that time helps put it all into perspective – Good luck with whatever you decide to do.   Robert

Mark – I had a melanoma removed in 2010 – at 0.35 mm very similar to yours. On sunscreen, the medical advice I was given was that it would have little impact on the recurrence of melanoma but it does reduce the risk of other skin cancers. I live in a very sunny place and so, for the first few months, I applied sunscreen every morning and no matter how much care I took it would make its way to my eyes, which is not fun. I also avoided going out in the sun. These days I’m more relaxed and only put on sunscreen if I know I am going to be in the outside for a prolonged period and I regularly go out without sunscreen early in the morning or late afternoon. The psychology of an early stage melanoma is complex and it’s too easy to let it dominate your thoughts. The good news is that time helps put it all into perspective – Good luck with whatever you decide to do.   Robert

I had a similar experience, my oncologist asked for a second pathology reding as the first gave mitosis reading as low and he wanted a judgment on whether it was 0 or 1. Also he wanted a reading from the lab he regularly used which specializes in Melanoma. The two reports were similar (depth slightly different 0.27 vs 0.30) but the second came down on the side of mitosis zero. There is a great deal of judgment call behind the path report and it seems to me that your first lab (perhaps not used to seeing melanoma everyday?) decided to be more conservative.

Ultimately it does not matter which was "right", your husband is doing the right thing by being vigilant with regular follow ups with dermatologist and oncologist (I'm down to an annual check-up but it's been longer for me). Try not to worry about it – I know that is the hard part!

I had a similar experience, my oncologist asked for a second pathology reding as the first gave mitosis reading as low and he wanted a judgment on whether it was 0 or 1. Also he wanted a reading from the lab he regularly used which specializes in Melanoma. The two reports were similar (depth slightly different 0.27 vs 0.30) but the second came down on the side of mitosis zero. There is a great deal of judgment call behind the path report and it seems to me that your first lab (perhaps not used to seeing melanoma everyday?) decided to be more conservative.

Ultimately it does not matter which was "right", your husband is doing the right thing by being vigilant with regular follow ups with dermatologist and oncologist (I'm down to an annual check-up but it's been longer for me). Try not to worry about it – I know that is the hard part!

I had a similar experience, my oncologist asked for a second pathology reding as the first gave mitosis reading as low and he wanted a judgment on whether it was 0 or 1. Also he wanted a reading from the lab he regularly used which specializes in Melanoma. The two reports were similar (depth slightly different 0.27 vs 0.30) but the second came down on the side of mitosis zero. There is a great deal of judgment call behind the path report and it seems to me that your first lab (perhaps not used to seeing melanoma everyday?) decided to be more conservative.

Ultimately it does not matter which was "right", your husband is doing the right thing by being vigilant with regular follow ups with dermatologist and oncologist (I'm down to an annual check-up but it's been longer for me). Try not to worry about it – I know that is the hard part!

I am also stage1er. I’ve had off and on low grade sore throat and now and again have difficulty swallowing. ENT said that is due to back of throat being spongy and so collects phlegm and other gunk. He said there is nothing to be done (some people just born with it) and suggested I massage it with my finger – it’s not so easy as this induces the gag reflex but it helps.

I am also stage1er. I’ve had off and on low grade sore throat and now and again have difficulty swallowing. ENT said that is due to back of throat being spongy and so collects phlegm and other gunk. He said there is nothing to be done (some people just born with it) and suggested I massage it with my finger – it’s not so easy as this induces the gag reflex but it helps.

I am also stage1er. I’ve had off and on low grade sore throat and now and again have difficulty swallowing. ENT said that is due to back of throat being spongy and so collects phlegm and other gunk. He said there is nothing to be done (some people just born with it) and suggested I massage it with my finger – it’s not so easy as this induces the gag reflex but it helps.

Hi,

I had a 0.35 mm melanoma removed last year and so like you am a stage 1er. As your dermatologist said, it is a good place to be, although, after the shock of a cancer diagnosis it may not feel like it is – I know it did not feel like that to me at first. On survival statisticsm  you need to remember that are just a historical study of a particular group and while they can give you an indication of the seriousness of the diagnosis there are many factors involved and so are not necessarily directly applicable to you; for instance our lesions were caught while they were very thin. I would not get too hung up about statistics. I know that is easier said than done.

Going forward it is important to be vigilant. I had differing advice on how I should follow up; the minimal being an annual dermatological check-up. I’ve been more proactive and see a melanoma specialist every six months (three months in first year) and have had my skin photographed to help identify changes in moles. This works for me but everyone is different and you should do whatever makes you most sense for you.

Take care,

Robert

Hi,

I had a 0.35 mm melanoma removed last year and so like you am a stage 1er. As your dermatologist said, it is a good place to be, although, after the shock of a cancer diagnosis it may not feel like it is – I know it did not feel like that to me at first. On survival statisticsm  you need to remember that are just a historical study of a particular group and while they can give you an indication of the seriousness of the diagnosis there are many factors involved and so are not necessarily directly applicable to you; for instance our lesions were caught while they were very thin. I would not get too hung up about statistics. I know that is easier said than done.

Going forward it is important to be vigilant. I had differing advice on how I should follow up; the minimal being an annual dermatological check-up. I’ve been more proactive and see a melanoma specialist every six months (three months in first year) and have had my skin photographed to help identify changes in moles. This works for me but everyone is different and you should do whatever makes you most sense for you.

Take care,

Robert

Hi,

I had a 0.35 mm melanoma removed last year and so like you am a stage 1er. As your dermatologist said, it is a good place to be, although, after the shock of a cancer diagnosis it may not feel like it is – I know it did not feel like that to me at first. On survival statisticsm  you need to remember that are just a historical study of a particular group and while they can give you an indication of the seriousness of the diagnosis there are many factors involved and so are not necessarily directly applicable to you; for instance our lesions were caught while they were very thin. I would not get too hung up about statistics. I know that is easier said than done.

Going forward it is important to be vigilant. I had differing advice on how I should follow up; the minimal being an annual dermatological check-up. I’ve been more proactive and see a melanoma specialist every six months (three months in first year) and have had my skin photographed to help identify changes in moles. This works for me but everyone is different and you should do whatever makes you most sense for you.

Take care,

Robert

Eric and Jill – May the Lord bless you and keep you and shine his light upon you. Robert

Eric and Jill – May the Lord bless you and keep you and shine his light upon you. Robert