Hi all

Hi RiRi1 and welcome to this forum.

I’m sure you’ll have a number of responses, however my initial comment is that whilst no melanoma diagnosis is good news, your grading at pT1a suggests that the melanoma is less than 0.8mm thick and is non-ulcerated.  That’s relative good news!

I’m not a clinician (merely a stage 4 melanoma patient), however I think your GP’s comment about “minor” is probably technically correct - the cancerous cells are all in-situ and haven’t moved into the lower levels of the skin. If you’re having a WLE, that will establish whether the cells have moved laterally from the original site.

My cancer had spread from the original site on my scalp to the lymph nodes in my neck before taking a detour to my liver and lungs. Nonetheless, I’m still here and after immunotherapy I’m in remission and living a full life.

In terms of your pain at the site of the operation, I can’t comment, other than to say if the location is an area which is subject to frequent movement, that might explain the discomfort?

Have you been assigned a CNS (clinical nurse specialist)?  They are an excellent source of information and reassurance.

I’m not sure if the above has helped, but let me know if you have any further queries/comments.

All the best and good luck going forwards.

Hi RiRi1 and a second welcome to the group

As Emo-Bham has said, your melanoma staging means that it's a very thin melanoma which hasn't spread to other areas of the body. However, your GP is wrong to say that it's 'in situ' as that's the stage before your Stage 1a and is often referred to as Stage 0. 

I've included links here to explain the difference between Stage 1a and in situ so you may want to speak to your GP about recording the correct stage in your medical notes.

You are right that the next procedure will probably me a wide local excision (WLE) as that is what everyone who's diagnosed with melanoma has. I wouldn't worry about the time between having your original biopsy and having the WLE as the biopsy removed the melanoma and the WLE is a "belt and braces approach" to make absolutely certain that no cells have been left behind close to where the melanoma was. The time between my excisional biopsy and WLE was about 4 months and nothing was found in the margin removed.

When you have a minute, it would be great if you could put something about your diagnosis and treatment to date 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.