hi, my 14 year old had a suspected melanoma removed 3weeks ago. I have just phoned dermatology to enquire whether results where in and was told they’d been back a week but just waiting for doctor to dictate a letter. I’m assuming this means she’s all clear as surely I’d get a phone call with a follow up appointment if they’d found anything? Am I right?
Hi
Waiting for the results of tests is always an anxious time so I'm not surprised you've chased them up.
I really wish I could reassure you but, unfortunately, it's impossible to say whether your daughter is clear of melanoma or not at this stage.
When my melanoma was diagnosed I had a letter giving me an appointment to see the consultant. At the time of sending out the letter they didn't know if it was melanoma or not as the biopsy results weren't back, so I would have been given either good or bad news when I went to see him.
The second time I had a suspicious lesion removed I was under a different hospital and they sent out a letter to tell me that everything was okay.
So without knowing what the protocol is on giving results of biopsies at your daughter's hospital, it's impossible to know if this is good news or not.
In my experience hospitals don't phone you to make a follow-up appointment you just get a letter with a date and time.
x
"Never regret a day in your life, good days give you happiness, bad days give you experience"
I'm sorry to hear that your daughter was diagnosed with melanoma but it's good news that they don't need to do a further wide local excision (WLE) as they're confident they have clear margins.
x
"Never regret a day in your life, good days give you happiness, bad days give you experience"
Hi
There's no need to apologise. Most of us didn't know anything about melanoma before we were diagnosed with one.
Before I answer your question can I ask if your daughter's been diagnosed with a melanoma in situ (link) as she's not having a further operation and, I'm guessing, you've been told that she won't need to go for regular check-ups?
"Never regret a day in your life, good days give you happiness, bad days give you experience"
If it is melanoma in situ then this is the best it can be without being told you don't have melanoma. Do check what it says in the letter though.
When you read the information in the link I sent you, you should have seen the advise on how to check your body. If your daughter has lots of moles then she could do as I did which is to take photos of the different parts of her body, ie upper right arm, lower left leg, etc and then compare those photos each month to how she looks now. That way she'll spot any changes more easily.
Probably the most difficult thing for her to accept will be the advise on avoiding the sun and sunbeds. Being a teenager I'm sure she won't want to be covered up, neither did I! However, I decided that it was the perfect excuse to get a whole new wardrobe and went on a spending spree! So every cloud does have a silver lining, although maybe not for you if you have to pay for her clothing.
Feel free to ask me anything else
x
"Never regret a day in your life, good days give you happiness, bad days give you experience"
I have to confess that it was my consultant who told me about photographing the moles so I can't take all the credit 
"Never regret a day in your life, good days give you happiness, bad days give you experience"
