Hi,
I was diagnosed with with pt1a on 19th March. Told I would be discussed at the MDT meeting and will hear back.
I received two referral emails on 25th March saying 20 week wait. So my anxiety and stress levels have been much higher than usual.
I got an appointment on 10th April for today 12th May so assumed it would be for the WLE.
Organised for someone to take me etc only to get to the appointment with another consultant who told me the biopsy came back as stage 1a, seemingly unaware I have already been aware of this, since I was already told on 19th March along with a full body check and yet he done that again today too.
I was told I’d be seen within 4 weeks for the surgery so that then takes me to June. Making it 16/17 weeks since I had the mole removed.
Just needed somewhere to write down how I am feeling, and that’s stressed, anxious and let down.
I’ve been full body checked twice by two different consultants within 2 months so that’s one positive I suppose.
I suffer with other disabilities so worked myself up to today being the WLE to then be told I have to wait another month.
I think they messed up and didn’t realise I’ve already had the appointment telling me and to check me 8 weeks ago 
So they’ll be paid for two of the same appointments while I am then left waiting.
And to top it all off, the consultant today told me it’s lucky its only 1a, it’s still cancer but it is good news as I had another patient this morning who had a 1.2mm. Made me feel totally invalidated as to how I feel with my diagnosis. Even though mine is early stage the anxiety and worry is still there
Hi RiRi1 and a very warm welcome to the group which I hope you'll find is both an informative and supportive place to be.
It's natural to be concerned when you've been given a cancer diagnosis but your pathway and timescale sounds pretty normal. My own experience was that I was diagnosed with melanoma at the end of November 2016 having had the excision biopsy in the middle of October, so about 6 weeks later as compared to your 5 weeks.
I then had an appointment to see the surgeon who would be doing my WLE about 8 weeks after my diagnosis, which is the same as you, and then had surgery 2 weeks after that, whereas you've been told you'll be seen within 4 weeks. From my mole being removed to having the WLE and, in my case a sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB), was about 18 weeks.
The reason I've shared my experience with you is so that you can see that your pathway and timescale is normal and that you don't need to feel let down by the length of time it will be between the excision biopsy and WLE.
I also had a full body check when I had my appointment with the consultant prior to surgery and he also went through the stage of my biopsy again with me. I think they do this as often your mind just shuts down when you're told at the first appointment that you have cancer and it gives you the opportunity to ask questions that you might not have thought of at the time.
I'm sure the consultant wasn't trying to "invalidate" how you felt about your cancer diagnosis but rather reassure you that the melanoma had been caught at a very early stage. I know that when I saw various health professionals after my diagnosis they were always at pains to reassure me that it had been caught very early, and that I was unlikely to need further treatment after the WLE.
I hope your appointment for the WLE comes through quickly and if you want to ask me anything about the procedure, or what happens afterwards, I'll be pleased to help.
Anne
((hugs))
"Never regret a day in your life, good days give you happiness, bad days give you experience"
Hi RiRi1
Yes I'm well and thanks for asking.
Our paths are remarkably similar in that when I turned up for my surgery it was with a different surgeon. My original one was on holiday that week.
All the best
"Never regret a day in your life, good days give you happiness, bad days give you experience"
