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SouthernN'Proud

SouthernN'Proud

Southern Discomfort
August 2003 was the month my melanoma was diagnosed in. Thus beganeth the nightmare.

A lot of medical procedures associated with this are done annually. CT/PET scans, dermatology exams, Lord knows what all I'm forgetting by name. I set all of them up to be done in August so I wouldn't forget to have them done. One trip to the primary doc, set all the appointments, voila. Today is the last of them for 2005. Two years down, three to go.

I can think of approximately 37, 914 things I would rather be doing today than sitting in two doc offices waiting to be poked, prodded, and surveyed. I feel pretty good, all things considered...minimal pain and discomfort, nothing I can't handle. And it's reassuring to hear that thus far, the cancer has not returned. Or at least, I hope that's what I'll hear...

But I'll feel alot better around 4 this afternoon when it's all over with.
 
SouthernN'Proud said:
August 2003 was the month my melanoma was diagnosed in. Thus beganeth the nightmare.

A lot of medical procedures associated with this are done annually. CT/PET scans, dermatology exams, Lord knows what all I'm forgetting by name. I set all of them up to be done in August so I wouldn't forget to have them done. One trip to the primary doc, set all the appointments, voila. Today is the last of them for 2005. Two years down, three to go.

I can think of approximately 37, 914 things I would rather be doing today than sitting in two doc offices waiting to be poked, prodded, and surveyed. I feel pretty good, all things considered...minimal pain and discomfort, nothing I can't handle. And it's reassuring to hear that thus far, the cancer has not returned. Or at least, I hope that's what I'll hear...

But I'll feel alot better around 4 this afternoon when it's all over with.
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My mother is a cancer survivor. As she says, I'd rather be poked, prodded, scanned, and zapped than buried.
 
I like what your mother said Prof. Good attitude.

SNP, good luck today, I'm sure all will be fine. I'll be thinking about you!
 
My father's delaing with the beginnings of what you're going through now, SnP. Lots of tests etc...to check if his 'spots' are cancerous or changing in any way.

Sucks, as does things like Chemo etc... but you've got a great source of strength. He'll see you to the other side.
 
May I ask what prompted you to to go the doc in the first place, back in August 2003? If you noticed something strange, what was it?

I need to get myself to a dermatologist also. I'm very fair skinned and have a lot of freckles so there's a lot to look over. There's nothing I noticed like changes in shape, color, etc but you never know, right?

Just wondering what started it and what the first few steps were for my own knowledge.

Good luck today, I don't envy your schedule. But it's great that you're feeling good and things seem to be going well. :)
 
greenfreak said:
May I ask what prompted you to to go the doc in the first place, back in August 2003? If you noticed something strange, what was it?

I need to get myself to a dermatologist also. I'm very fair skinned and have a lot of freckles so there's a lot to look over. There's nothing I noticed like changes in shape, color, etc but you never know, right?

Just wondering what started it and what the first few steps were for my own knowledge.

Good luck today, I don't envy your schedule. But it's great that you're feeling good and things seem to be going well. :)
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My wife noticed that a mole I have had as long as I can remember had darkened. I had a doc appointment for something else the next week, so I mentioned it. He thought it was nothing, but removed it anyway. It turned out to be stage III-A melanoma that had spread to a cluster of lymph nodes near my right armpit. 2 surgeries, 9 months of chemo which caused chronic pancreatitis, necessitating three hospitalizations 2 more surgeries and I forget how many scopes later, here sits I.

It does indeed beat burial, but anybody who tells you it's no big deal is lying through their teeth. I sympathize with anyone going through chemo. I'm still grappling with pancreas related pain almost daily. It's impossible to plan things more than a day or two ahead, because I never know when I'll be feeling OK and when I'll be in so much pain I can't stand upright.

With any luck, today I'll find out if there is anything else wrong causing this pain or of it's just something that'll straighten itself out, or if it'll always be there. But most likely, I'll be greeted with more head shaking, brow furrowing, and half-hearted expressions of puzzlement.

For the record, I was never a sunbather either. That is the most common cause of melanoma though, so for the sake of all you hold dear to you, stay out of tanning beds and minimize your exposure to the sun. It ain't worth it just to look good in a bathing suit, no matter what Madison Avenue tells you.

And thanks for the well wishes. You guys rock.
 
K I'm gonna have to go. I'm all paranoided out now.

Hoping all the bestest for you.
 
Was said mole protruding or shallow to the skin? Large or small? Noticable lumpage under the afflicted area? Were there any symptoms prior to diagnosis? ... pain, discomfort, stiffness, fatigue?
 
Thanks SNP. I don't have any moles but Rusty does. Maybe we should go together. I'm getting to that age where I need to start the regular checkups with assorted docs due to the family ailments I'm at risk to inherit.

I had a scare a few months back, there was a hard bump in my armpit. It hurt to touch it and was about the size of a quarter. I had the doc look at it, he asked me if I shaved my underarms. I said, "If I didn't, don't you think you would notice?" :D He said that it was a hair follicle infection, because it was red and swollen. Put me on antibiotics and it cleared right up.

But, shit, from the day I found it to when the doc told me that was four days. I couldn't fathom the possibility that it was a cancerous lump. I'm already at a greater risk for breast cancer because I've never had kids and thus never breast-fed. Not to mention there is a higher percentage of breast cancer on the island I live on than in the rest of the state. :eek:

Yeah, Les, I'm with you. This shit is starting to freak me out now.
 
A few years ago, these spots I'd had on my shoulder for ages started to puff up a little bit. I went to the on-campus doctor about it, and he showed me a brochure with the four telltale signs of melanoma or whatever it was. Apparently I didn't meet the criteria. He prescribed me some sort of cream to rub on the skin there every day, and after a few days the spots went back down. So since the cream worked, I guess he must have been right. I would think that cancer wouldn't respond to a cream.
 
unclehobart said:
Was said mole protruding or shallow to the skin? Large or small? Noticable lumpage under the afflicted area? Were there any symptoms prior to diagnosis? ... pain, discomfort, stiffness, fatigue?
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It wasn't flush with the skin, never had been. It darkened and developed some ridges. Telltale signs. The size of the mole isn't all that important, but obviously the larger the mole the more likely it could be a problem. If in doubt, have it cut off...trust me.

No symptoms at all. I had the mole shaved off, left the doc's office, and went to my folks' to break and can beans. Never gave it a second thought until...
 
Well, damn. :mope:

The first doc, dermatologist to check for problematic moles etc went great.

Then came the oncologist.

My latest scan showed "something". I hate that word. It's in the lower left region of the abdomen just above the groin. He poked and prodded and rubbed and squeezed, and said he wasn't terribly concerned about it...probably nothing.

I've heard that before.

Another scan in three months, "just to make sure". Which means another day and a half to two days of unearthly pain afterward from the barium agitating my pancreas.

Oh, and he wasn't done spreading sunshine. I asked about the abdominal pain. His reply was less than what I hoped for. Apparently, the pseudocyst I was informed I had a year ago...the one they damn near had to reconstruct my pancreas to resolve...the one I was told was gone...isn't. It's "significantly diminshed", but can flare up.

No shit Marcus Welby.

No treatment for it either. Might stick around six month, might stick around six years, might be here forever. Short of doing the pancreatic reconstruction, there just ain't nothin' they can do with it. So I get to endure this for who knows how long.

I'm gaining weight too. Still 30 pounds lighter than I was when all this started, but it's coming back nonetheless. Doc suggested I excercise more. I suggested he do something to make that possible and bearable. We left without punching one another, more a Herculean effort on my part than his most likely.

K, that's it. Gonna go stick my head in the oven. Later y'all.
 
Overpriced educated guessers. I hate doctors & always argue with mine (surprise surprise). Surgeons I respect, they're mechanics with a degree, but regualr doctors can bite me.

Let's hope the "shadow" was the idiot x-ray techies thumb image.
 
Gonz said:
Overpriced educated guessers. I hate doctors & always argue with mine (surprise surprise). Surgeons I respect, they're mechanics with a degree, but regualr doctors can bite me.

Let's hope the "shadow" was the idiot x-ray techies thumb image.
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YES! you do have to worry about the xray techs......radiologists.......the one my husband had diagnosed him wrong and then the foot doctor did too.so instead of the lump on his foot being a ganglion cyst...it was infact a tumor. The foot doc poked and proded...and in a year he had a below the knee amputation. Synovial Sarcoma...then 3 years later after 6 months of chemo, 1 week out of every month in the hospital , a nodule came back in his lower left lobe of his lung which had to be removed...another nodule showed up in the middle of right lung inside, which he never went back to the docs. God only knows how far the cancer spread by now, but when you have a death sentence and dont do anything about -May god be with you!

SnP-goodluck and prayers are sent your way sweetie!
 
Mare said:
YES! you do have to worry about the xray techs......radiologists.......the one my husband had diagnosed him wrong and then the foot doctor did too.so instead of the lump on his foot being a ganglion cyst...it was infact a tumor. The foot doc poked and proded...and in a year he had a below the knee amputation. Synovial Sarcoma...then 3 years later after 6 months of chemo, 1 week out of every month in the hospital , a nodule came back in his lower left lobe of his lung which had to be removed...another nodule showed up in the middle of right lung inside, which he never went back to the docs. God only knows how far the cancer spread by now, but when you have a death sentence and dont do anything about -May god be with you!

SnP-goodluck and prayers are sent your way sweetie!
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So.. how far along is the lawsuit for malpractice?
 
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