Hi everyone,
Hoping to connect with anyone who’s in or been in a similar situation. I’m desperately looking for positive reassuring stories to help me stop spiralling!
my current journey is as follows:
July 2024 - noticed a new lesion on the back of left thigh. Presented as two small nodules together. Brand new and not part of an existing mole.
12th July 2024 - GP referred via the 2 week wait to the skin cancer dermatology unit.
10th September 2024 - Saw dermatologist who classed the lesion as a benign mole. No further action.
19th July 2025 - noticed the lesion had been growing slowly over last couple of months. Asked GP to refer me back to dermatology.
7th August 2025 - After contacting various private hospitals I saw a dermatologist for an initial consultation. She looked at the lesion under a dermascope and stated it had no concerning features and diagnosed as benign but agreed to remove it because it was growing and I was anxious about it. Surgery was not scheduled until 24th October 2025 as classed as non-urgent.
16th August 2025 - Consultant decided to run Saturday clinic due to long waiting times. Asked if I’d liked to attend. Full excision of lesion completed. Still no concerns and said I would get letter in the post.
28th August 2025 - phone call to say that my pathology results were being sent for second opinion and consultant was taking my case to MDT. Asked to book in to her clinic the following week.
4th September 2025 - diagnosed with pt2a nodular melanoma. 1.9mm breslow thickness, high mitotic rate of 7mm but no ulceration and no signs of spread of biopsy. Confirmed fully removed with clear margins.
11th September 2025 - meeting with plastic consultant to discuss WLE and sentinel node biopsy.
i am going through all the emotions but mostly feel angry and let down. I have had to advocate for myself every step of this journey so far. I am 33 and have a two year old daughter and my world has come crashing down in an instant. I’m also struggling that I’ve been given this diagnosis and don’t feel remotely ill. It’s mentally a lot to get my head around.
thanks for a reading if you’ve got this far.
Hi Jenny Elizabeth75da32 and a very warm welcome to the group which I hope you'll find is both an informative and supportive place to be.
I too was diagnosed with stage pT2a melanoma, although mine was an amelanotic melanoma not a nodular. However, all melanomas are treated the same, ie a wide local excision (WLE) and sometimes sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) and or a CT scan depending on the depth. I had the WLE and SLNB, 9 years ago when i was diagnosed, but CT scans weren't used.
It sounds like you had a stressful time getting to the point where you are now so I can understand why you feel let down. I totally empathise with how hard it is to understand how you could have had cancer without feeling ill. Hopefully you won't need any further treatment after the results of your WLE and SLNB.
I'm happy to share my experiences of these procedures with you if there's anything you want to know.
It would be great if you could put something about your diagnosis into your profile as it really helps others when replying to you and also when looking for someone on a similar pathway. It also means that you don't have to keep repeating yourself. To do this click on your username and then select 'Profile'. You can amend it at any time and if you're not sure what to write you can take a look at mine by clicking on my username.
"Never regret a day in your life, good days give you happiness, bad days give you experience"
