Have you ever been checked for skin cancer?

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Gin N' Tonic

Member
Joined
Oct 30, 2009
Messages
287
Location
Waterbury Ct. USA
If you are over 50 and haven't been to a dermatologist for full body scan I urge you to consider it. My wife was diagnosed with a melanoma 5 years ago, had it removed and thankfully nothing has returned, She goes for a check up every 6 months because of the prior history. When she was diagnosed I decided that it was high time for me to get checked out since I was in my latter 50's. I went once a year and all seemed well. Well folks, when I went three weeks ago they found something. I had it biopsied and it is cancerous. I had an appointment on the following Monday to have the procedure to remove what is left of it and some surrounding tissue and hopefully I will follow my wife and become free of it but now I will be going for a check up every six months just like she does. Please folks, if you haven't been checked out, consider having it done. It only takes a few minutes and it's easy to spot and easily treatable. If caught early the 5 year survival rate is 99%. I'm not looking for sympathy or pity, I'd like to get through to at least 1 person here and maybe prevent an unnecessary death. I know that we lost a member years ago from this and I hope that I will not follow but for now I just have to wait and see.

I'll get off the soapbox now. Please consider getting checked out.

Thank you for reading.
 
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Gin N' Tonic said:
If you are over 50 and haven't been to a dermatologist for full body scan I urge you to consider it. My wife was diagnosed with a melanoma 5 years ago, had it removed and thankfully nothing has returned, She goes for a check up every 6 months because of the prior history. When she was diagnosed I decided that it was high time for me to get checked out since I was in my latter 50's. I went once a year and all seemed well. Well folks, when I went three weeks ago they found something. I had it biopsied and it is cancerous. I had an appointment on the following Monday to have the procedure to remove what is left of it and some surrounding tissue and hopefully I will follow my wife and become free of it but now I will be going for a check up every six months just like she does. Please folks, if you haven't been checked out, consider having it done. It only takes a few minutes and it's easy to spot and easily treatable. If caught early the 5 year survival rate is 99%. I'm not looking for sympathy or pity, I'd like to get through to at least 1 person here and maybe prevent an unnecessary death. I know that we lost a member years ago from this and I hope that I will not follow but for now I just have to wait and see.

I'll get off the soapbox now. Please consider getting checked out.

Thank you for reading.
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I have done it a couple times but has been about 3 years now so I will be going again. Just gone through a few cancer scares this past 2 years. Had 2 whole body PET scans. Thought they found something and had surgery but was not cancerous. The big "C" is no joke.
 
I had my annual check 10 days ago. Zapped a couple of pre-cancerous spots on my nose (most likely due to sunburn from those long-distant days before we were all told we should be using sun-screen). I'd much rather catch them early.

I hope your procedure was a complete success and you are rid of it now.
 
It doesn't hurt a thing to bring some attention to this. Ever! I've had three MOHS procedures so far. Many spots frozen with Nitrogen. I have told my kids, grandkids, and even great grandkids to use sun screen. I don't think they do. I used so much of it, I decided it was more cost effective to wear long sleeved shirts and pants. No soap box! It's worth the conversation. I hope you do well!
 
I had a similar situation as Todd. My doctor retired and it was a year to get in to another while he had seen me every 6 months due to previous Mohs surgeries. I had to miss that appointment due to a tooth infection and so it's another year. Meanwhile I've got spots that need to be attended to. American health care does not seem able to attend to the needs of it's citizens.
 
Been there, done that. See the derma guy every 3 months. Had five surgeries (2 top of head, nose, neck, upper chest) for basal cell and/or squamous cell. Never wore a hat when I was young and baked in the sun -- dumb!! Father and brother had melanomas. Father's metastasized and spread to liver and brain; lost him several years ago. Brother's is gone (for now). As Scott said above, get checked out early and often.
 
My wife and I both go every 6 months and have gone twice a year for the past 10 years. Both of us have been found with pre-cancerous at a visit where there was none the previous visit. LOML had one that was cancerous on the top back of her head where she did not have it previously. I had a small spot on my neck just below and behind my ear this last visit. It felt like a splinter barely sticking up or a tiny scab that would not heal. The doctor was certain that it was and incised a 1/4" hole around it. The result was that it was pre-cancerous, but the 1/4" incision removed the infected area completely.

Regular checkups (every 6 months to at least once a year) are very beneficial.
 
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Thank you for this update. My wife lost her uncle to this because he would not go in for a checkup. This may be my first checkup scheduled in 2026.
 
I got word today that some of the deep tissue that they sent in still has melanoma cells in it so I'm going back for round two on Monday. I hope they can get ahead of it.
 
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