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Snet
United States3573 Posts
For as long as I remembered I had a black mole on my left arm right above my elbow. I remember it always being there, but my parents claimed it just showed up recently. It didn't look that weird but it was significantly darker than any of the other moles on my body.
I figured I only have a few more years left of my dad's awesome Navy Health Insurance, so I decided to get the mole cut off and checked by a Dermatologist. I had this procedure done last Monday on the 16th.
It was a simple fifteen minute "surgery" where they injected a small amount of novocaine into my arm and used a scalpel to remove the mole. I opted for this procedure over the one where they use some kind of device to pop the mole out, but that leaves a scar. This one would take three stitches and should leave no sign of anything being done in a few years.
The following Monday I went to the clinic to get my stitches removed, kind of worried that I had not gotten a call with my results. They said it would take two to three days, but I figured sometimes they get really busy.
The doctor wanted to tell me in person, rather than on the phone, that the lab found a positive for Malignant Melanoma in the mole and surrounding tissue. My first thought was the irony of a computer nerd spending most of his childhood inside having skin cancer.
From there instead of freaking out I just asked what needs to be done. The doctor at the clinic referred me to a Dermatologist, who then got into contact with me only thirty minutes of leaving the clinic. I was impressed by the proactiveness of the whole situation.
From there I was scheduled for surgery on the 25th. They planned to cut 5mm deep to test for any signs of Melanoma deeper in the skin. They hope that this was caught early and that it hasn't spread. Me being only 18 I received nothing but positive words and hopefulness from the three Dermatologists working on me that day.
So much for me not wanting to get a scar, they told me a three inch scar will be unavoidable. The procedure itself was very similar to having the mole cut out. They injected quite a bit more novocaine into my arm than last time, and it took about an hour rather than fifteen minutes. However, the entire procedure was completely painless, just the uncomfortable sensation of novocaine being injected into a good portion of my arm.
The nurses assisting were more then happy to take pictures for me. However, they were not familiar with my phone, so when they took the pictures they failed to save them properly. I only managed to get one of the final stage where it was all stitched up.
+ Show Spoiler [Squeamish may not want to view] +
I am still waiting on my results, but everything about this situation has me not the least bit worried of a serious condition. I will just have to be that much more careful during sunny days, and have to go for yearly body checks to a Dermatologist.
I guess I will end this by saying, don't hesitate to get yourself checked at the hospital for anything suspicious. If you have a mole that looks even slightly weird, just get it cut out. It's a harmless procedure and you'll be fully healed in under a week. If you put it off you might find out when you're 30 that it spread to multiple parts of your body or something. And Melanoma can kill, so you really are "better safe than sorry".
 
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gross picture.....NO ONE LOOK AT IT
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On March 27 2009 06:43 Racenilatr wrote:
gross picture.....NO ONE LOOK AT IT
Boo hoo its some stitches.
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Snet
United States3573 Posts
On March 27 2009 06:48 Megalisk wrote:Boo hoo its some stitches.
Yea, it's really not that gross lol. No blood even.
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Ouch, I hope you got some pain killers or something, looks/sounds painful.
Don't worry, scars are badass ;D
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Oh man I thought this was Smix for a while and was so confused as to the gender of the person writing it.
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On March 27 2009 06:43 Racenilatr wrote:
gross picture.....NO ONE LOOK AT IT
what world did you grow up in that, that constitutes gross... It's rather mild
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Calgary25980 Posts
Wow, crazy. Glad to hear you caught it and I hope everything ends well. I really liked reading this story.
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Man these things are no joke to deal with, and I tip my hat to you for going to your doctors right away instead of first consulting team liquid about your course of action to deal with the melonoma. Some other people have obviously chose the latter. There is also the guy who took matters into his own hands (pun intended), but that's another story entirely.
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On March 27 2009 06:51 Snet wrote:Show nested quote +On March 27 2009 06:48 Megalisk wrote:On March 27 2009 06:43 Racenilatr wrote:
gross picture.....NO ONE LOOK AT IT Boo hoo its some stitches. Yea, it's really not that gross lol. No blood even.
MY friends infected knee now that was gross shit. That just not pleasant to look at.
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you did well by being so proactive. I wish you the very best with the results. Goodluck. =) (And again, props for being so brave.)
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wow nice catch man @___@; goodluck buddy hope everything goes well for you!
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i have this big black spot thing on the side of my head thats covered by hair since i was born
hmm :\
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the blog title is funny.... the rest isint good luck
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On March 27 2009 06:58 Lycaeus wrote:what world did you grow up in that, that constitutes gross... It's rather mild
Keep in mind that Race can't even go to a rated R film without a parent.
Snet, I hope that you took care of it, seems like you were very mature about the whole deal and that's good. Let us know if you hear anything else man! Best of luck!
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Pretty shocking story, thanks for sharing it with us. It certainly left an impression on me. I hope everything turns out okay.
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Wow, that's a little scary. Best of luck!
Got any photos of the little bugger before it was cut off?
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Physician
United States4146 Posts
- in a way u have to count ur blessings, u found the darn phucker and the melanoma could have been in a worse spot, like ur nose, ur pecker or near an eye lid.. then ur in for a trip when they have to do that 3 inch marign : (
- good luck on biopsy result.
http://www.melanomacenter.org/staging/tnmstagingsystem.html
- don't freak out if they order a chest x-ray and other tests; it's standard procedure even if they are early stages
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why did you make me read this? WHY? I have like 4 moles one is sorta big on my leg but it always has been there. Now I'm feeling paranoid, won't be going to a doctor though. I'll take it like a man
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United States12607 Posts
Interesting story, with a good message. Stay healthy, everyone!
Snet, have you heard back about whether there is melanoma present elsewhere? I hope everything turns out ok for you.
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Snet
United States3573 Posts
On March 27 2009 07:57 Physician wrote:- in a way u have to count ur blessings, u found the darn phucker and the melanoma could have been in a worse spot, like ur nose, ur pecker or near an eye lid.. then ur in for a trip when they have to do that 3 inch marign : ( - good luck on biopsy result. http://www.melanomacenter.org/staging/tnmstagingsystem.html- don't freak out if they order a chest x-ray and other tests; it's standard procedure even if they are early stages
Definitely, a family friend had the procedure done on his face - twice  . I am definitely lucky so to speak.
So far no chest x-rays but I do have an appointment with Optometry to have the back of my eyes looked at. They said Melanoma can occur in the eyes and mouth so I should give my dentist a heads up during my next cleaning.
Thanks for all the good luck wishes, TL.
On March 27 2009 08:08 JWD wrote:
Interesting story, with a good message. Stay healthy, everyone!
Snet, have you heard back about whether there is melanoma present elsewhere? I hope everything turns out ok for you.
So far they do not think it has spread. That is what this procedure was for. Physician mentioned a three inch margin, that is the area they are testing. They will be looking for signs of the Melanoma in that skin they removed, and if they do - afaik they will have to cut deeper, until it's all gone.
I will be getting a full skin check by the Dermatologist, which they will carefully look over every inch of my body and remove any suspect moles for more testing to see if it is elsewhere on my body.
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Great attitude, man. Good luck!
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Congrats on outsmarting cancer. 
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I know how you feel, I've had mellonoma my self ...when i was 22 it was found on my back between my shoulderblades, itwas allready in the state of clarks level 2 .....they futheron cut out a huge piece in a 4 inch diameter, and i bassicly had a bagtuck cause it wasn't possible to transplant skin there......it hadn't spread they said.....so my reaction was to just not dealing with it, pretty imature. I am of scandinavian heritage so pretty fair skinned, but grew up in Latin America mostly, and thats probably the reason that I got it, to much sun and way to strong.
Anyways, I kind of got this melt down all of a sudden(after a year)...cause i had pushed it all away for far to long, not delt with it att all..probably out of fear....I was really scared of gettin diagonosed with melanin melanoma again, and the first 5 years was miserable ! it's now been 7 years, and i'm doing great. My advice to you is, to talk about it as much as you can ....don't hide it, it hits you later.....don't worry to much , sound like you are in good hands,sending you blessings Maria.
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Glad that worked out for you, that's scary shit. A couple random questions if you dont mind answering I'm just curious. Did the mole grow hair at all? And did it ever like feel sore/hurt?
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I'm happy that you went and got it checked out instead of just thinking 'it's probably nothing', which a lot of people would think. I should probably take a look at my own body now...
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Snet
United States3573 Posts
On March 28 2009 18:26 Divinek wrote:
Glad that worked out for you, that's scary shit. A couple random questions if you dont mind answering I'm just curious. Did the mole grow hair at all? And did it ever like feel sore/hurt?
It never grew hair or was soar. It didn't even look that weird, it was just bigger and blacker than any of my other moles - so it stood out. The turning point that made me make the appointment is one day my arm was itching around that area. I have no clue if the mole itself was itching, I don't think it was, but I did one of those "get an idea in your head and you convince yourself its true" kind of things.
Maria, it sounds like you had it pretty rough compared to me. I know it's kind of easy to just ignore because you have no clue it's even there until you get tested, or it gets into later stages. I do hope you're atleast getting yearly skin checks just to be safe? Thanks for your support.
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Snet
United States3573 Posts
I thought I would give an update on what has happened since the day of surgery. I returned to the hospital today with the following agenda:
- Suture removal
- Full body check for any suspicious moles
- Have eyes dilated and checked for Melanoma
It turns out the surgery was a complete success and there are no traces of Melanoma left in the area. The doctor also did not find any suspect moles during the full body check, and the back of my eyes could not be any better. This whole situation which was at first a shock and scare to the family, now is resolved - and all I have to show for it is a three inch scar that will eventually fade in time.
+ Show Spoiler [ Updated picture without stitches] +
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Haha, that is rather ironic. I thought prolonged exposure to the sun caused melanoma. Did they figure out how it happened?
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Snet
United States3573 Posts
On April 07 2009 05:36 ghostWriter wrote:
Haha, that is rather ironic. I thought prolonged exposure to the sun caused melanoma. Did they figure out how it happened?
My grandmother and uncle had Melanoma, so it was more than likely genetic.
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Physician
United States4146 Posts
How deep did it go in mm? or what Breslow thickness? or what Clark level was it?
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Smix
United States4549 Posts
That's really good to hear Snet! It's a relief it was caught early and that there were no further traces of melanoma. Your family must be incredibly relieved as well... congrats!
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Why did that appear? Is it 100% random?
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On March 27 2009 08:02 ibutoss wrote:
why did you make me read this? WHY? I have like 4 moles one is sorta big on my leg but it always has been there. Now I'm feeling paranoid, won't be going to a doctor though. I'll take it like a man
You're gonna take death like a man?
No one's a man when it comes to death.
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Snet
United States3573 Posts
On April 07 2009 07:59 Physician wrote:
How deep did it go in mm? or what Breslow thickness? or what Clark level was it?
Being that it was caught extremely early (18 years old) it was only Clark Level 1 and I believe they only went 5mm deep. I think she actually said, after they saw the results, that what I had isn't even considered cancer yet because it hadn't breached the dermis. Had I missed the mole and let it grow it would of been a much more serious situation. I believe now that we have the test results my condition was actually called "Malignant Melanoma In-situ" meaning it hadn't gone deep enough to be Clark Level 2?
I'm really newb with all this info but she dumbed it down for me and said "Because it was caught early this is the friendliest of all Melanomas and is almost a 100% cure rate".
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You win! The manliest man is the one who knows when to go to others for help.
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EPT![[image loading]](http://img164.imageshack.us/img164/5237/stitches.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://img408.imageshack.us/img408/7563/withoutstitches.jpg)
