Hi. I’ve been diagnosed with Desmoplastic Melanoma a couple of weeks ago. Histology were unable to stage my biopsy- does that suggest deeper than stage 1? .Has anyone else had experience of this? Is it the norm to have to wait for a WE for staging? My next appointment is in 4 weeks with plastics so I feel a little anxious. Thank you.
Hi JT22 and a very warm welcome to the online community which I hope you'll find is both an informative and supportive place to be.
I'm sorry to read that you've recently been diagnosed with melanoma and I know what a shock this will probably have been for you.
Melanoma is staged in 2 ways. Initially it is based on what's known as the Breslow thickness. If you look at the link you will see that it ranges from T1 (less than 1mm thick) to T4 (more than 4mm thick). Then, once the wide local excision (WLE) and sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) are done a final staging is done which takes into account things like whether it was ulcerated, if it's spread, etc.
I hope this helps a little but your SCNS should be able to tell you why you haven't been given an initial stage.
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"Never regret a day in your life, good days give you happiness, bad days give you experience"
You should have been given your SCNS's telephone number in case you want to ask anything. If not, call your consultant's secretary and she should be able to tell you who your SCNS is and give you her contact details.
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"Never regret a day in your life, good days give you happiness, bad days give you experience"
Hi JT22
Yes, it doesn't matter what stage you are. Their role is to be a point of contact if you have any questions and also if you find anything on your skin that you're worried about in between your check-ups with your consultant.
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"Never regret a day in your life, good days give you happiness, bad days give you experience"
