Hi all,
I wanted to say a big thank you for this page and this group. Over the last few weeks it has really helped me. The Macmillan helpline pointed me in your direction. I apologise for the long post, but I just need to write all of this down and ‘get it out there’.
I am a woman in my early forties and a few weeks ago went to see my GP about a lesion on my shoulder. It’s been there for years - it started very small and then grew. Years ago a GP diagnosed it as a supernumerary nipple and said it looked healthy... I have never been convinced by this diagnosis and have asked another GP who explained the ABCDE rule to me. I have quite a few moles and keep checking on them all.
Anyway, a couple of months ago the lesion started to change - become significantly bigger (it’s about 2.5cm) , extremely itchy, scaly, lots of different colours and signs of regression. So I went to the GP. I have to say everyone has acted very quickly and i had phone consultations from the Dermatologist and then referred to a plastic surgeon. At first the plastic surgeon told me over the phone it was unlikely to be melanoma as I have had the lesion for years, but wanted to see me in person. I felt a bit daft worrying so much at this point.
At the face to face interview the plastic surgeon said that he was pleased it wasn’t as large as he thought - he was under the impression it was larger than 3cm which meant taking the whole thing off was easier. He told me that there were some concerning signs however and that it could be melanoma - the itching particularly and it looks like there has been some bleeding. The regression he said was worrying but it does show that my immune system is trying to fight ‘whatever it is.’ He also said it was raised and looked ‘thick’. He didn’t disagree it was a supernumerary nipple, but said he was unsure what it could be. He explained that if it is melanoma it may have spread and further tests on my lymph nodes will be done.
Anwyay, I had the biopsy a couple of days ago after having to isolate prior to surgery for nearly a fortnight - doesn’t this make things seem harder? Not being able to distract myself with seeing my parents and friends has been horrendous! But thankfully I have a really lovely husband who has been so good. My work have been incredible too - my manager had cancer a few years ago and has been so good to me.
They have removed all the lesion plus another one that they thought needed to go. The theatre staff were amazing - the staff on the theatre admission ward not too good. I sometimes wonder if you say you are having a mole removed people don’t think it’s such a big deal - not sure if other people find this? I have to say, that I have always worried about skin cancer (I am incredibly pale) but didn’t understand the differences - I now know melanoma is something to be deeply concerned about - it’s not “just a mole.“
I am doing ok - the piece of skin they removed seems to have been larger than I thought. I am in quite a bit of pain, but I’m ok. I’ve been told I have to wait 3 weeks for the results - this seems like such a long time. I’m pleased that ‘whatever it is’ has gone - I started to really hate it. It was growing quite rapidly and itching me like crazy.
I just wanted to put my story down here and share. I’m sure people are going through so much worse, but this is a tough time isn’t it? And when people say ‘oh you having a mole removed, well it’s only minor isn’t it?’ it makes me feel like I am being a drama queen.
I’m so grateful that there are forums like these - just to share stories with people who I know will understand.
x
Hi JosieK and a very warm welcome to the online community and in particular the melanoma group
Firstly, you are most definitely not being a drama queen! You're right that a typical reaction is "it's just a mole", and hopefully yours will be, but people don't understand what it could be.
If you are diagnosed with melanoma, then for most people the treatment will be a wide local excision (WLE) and an optional sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB). I've had both of these and I'm happy to answer any questions you might have. However, you might want to find out what your dodgy mole is first before jumping ahead to treatment.
Most people will agree with you that the waiting for results is an awful time. As you've said, things that you'd normally do to occupy yourself aren't so easy to do during this pandemic. I distracted myself with hobbies while lots of people find mindfulness helpful. If that is something that interests you, clicking here will take you to the NHS page on mental health apps with links to some that are free.
Do come back and let us know your results and, in the meantime, if you want to ask any questions or just have a general moan then go ahead 
x
"Never regret a day in your life, good days give you happiness, bad days give you experience"
Sounds like you had a lovely afternoon JosieK.
I wish I shared your love of gardening but I'd rather be sitting in it with a cup of coffee, reading a book than working in it! However, it sounds just like the sort of thing you can be doing to take your mind off 'things'
I think it probably depends where your excision site is as to how much it hurts and for how long. Mine was from my arm so just felt sore for a couple of days and I didn't need to take any painkillers. Hopefully, yours will calm down soon but get in touch with your GP if it doesn't.
Happy gardening
x
"Never regret a day in your life, good days give you happiness, bad days give you experience"
Hi JosieK
I'm sorry to hear that your mole did turn out to be a melanoma and I'm sure you have lots of questions now, I know I did!
You should be offered a sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) as I think they are normally offered to anyone who's melanoma is 0.8m or more. I had this op so ask any questions you want and I'll happily share my experience with you.
I didn't have a CT scan so can't help with that, but there are others in the group who have.
You're doing the right thing in just taking everything a day at at time. How's the gardening going?
Take care
x
"Never regret a day in your life, good days give you happiness, bad days give you experience"
