EDIT he realised this morning that this appointment willl be one that was scheduled before the diagnosis. We will call on Monday just to double check. But he thinks the letter for the WLE and CT scan have still to come
My husband had a mole on his chest that changed shape. He went to his GP who just said it should be okay. In June it had bumped up, looked almost like a water blister but hard to touch. We were on holiday but as soon as we gor home he made GP appointment with a different doctor who referred him to dermatologist. At the dermatologist appointment they removed it and sent it away to be tested. He got a call to go to the hospital this week and was told he has malignant melanoma. He has been referred to get 2 cms cut around the original cut and a CT scan. And told he will then need follow ups every 3 months for 3 years then 2 years. I stupidly was not with him, for some reason I thought he was going to the doctor and dint think it would be this news. He assures me he has told me everything and not held anything back.
He got a letter today and has to go to outpatient in December, we assume for the wide local excision (it doesn't say) I feel this is far too long to wait. He is going to call them on Monday. Is this too long? I feel the WLE should be done ASAP.
he said he wasn't told anything about what stage it is. Would they know that at this point or does the WLE tell them that?
I cant think about anything else. He doesn't want to tell any family or friends as he's scared it will get back to our teenage children. He doesn't want to tell anyone anything until we have the CT scan results.
Hi Mollymolly and a very warm welcome to the melanoma group which I hope you'll find is both an informative and supportive place to be.
I'm sorry to read that your husband has just been diagnosed with melanoma and I know what a scary time this will be for you both.
It's not unusual for the WLE to be quite some time after the excision biopsy. I had my WLE about 16 weeks after the excision biopsy.
When I queried the length of time with my SCNS (skin cancer nurse specialist) she explained that the WLE was essentially a "mopping up exercise" just to make absolutely certain that no cancer cells had been left behind close to where the melanoma was removed. I didn't have a CT scan but a sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) and this was done at the same time as the WLE.
If your husband wants to know what stage his melanoma is he could give his SCNS, sometimes referred to as a keyworker or Macmillan nurse, a call tomorrow and she will be able to tell him. She'll also be able to clarify what the appointment he has is for. The excision biopsy provides the stage and this will only change if anything is found on his CT.
If you think of anything else you want to ask, just fire away!
Anne
"Never regret a day in your life, good days give you happiness, bad days give you experience"
Hi Mollymolly
How are you doing today? I hope your husband has managed to have a chat with his SCNS today to find out his stage and what the appointment letter is for.
No, I wasn't worried about the wait between having the melanoma removed and the WLE and SLNB as my SCNS had put my mind at rest by pointing out that the tumour had already been removed and the WLE was just 'belt and braces' to make sure no cells had been left behind.
Obviously I'd have preferred it to be much quicker but there was nothing I could do about so decided I was not going to allow the cancer to ruin my life and just tried to live in the 'now' rather than worry about something that might never happen.
I was more apprehensive about having the operations as the SLNB meant I had to have a general anaesthetic and I'd never had one before.
((hugs))
"Never regret a day in your life, good days give you happiness, bad days give you experience"
Hi Mollymolly
You are right that melanoma has 5 stages from stage 0 through to stage 4 and his consultant, and SCNS, will know what stage your husband's melanoma is. However, you could be right that he doesn't want to know his staging yet.
Anne
"Never regret a day in your life, good days give you happiness, bad days give you experience"
