To ask what melanoma treatment involves?

[Hangingwithmygnomies]

Sorry posting for traffic. This year has honestly been the worst year of my life. I've lost my Grandad, my Aunt who is like a second Mum to me is battling breast cancer, I may lose my job due to covid and now my sister (who is my best friend) has been diagnosed with melanoma. At the moment we're not sure at what stage she is but I want to be as prepared as I can be to be able to support her through this. What happens with melanoma treatment? Is it removed and then that's it or will she have to have chemo or radiotherapy? I need some positive stories as I'm really struggling with everything that's happened this year

Anyone?

My dad had one last year. They removed it. That was it. if they’ve caught it early there’s unlikely to be any other treatment. If they haven’t it’s usually immunotherapy which can have excellent results even if advanced, it’s a cancer which has made massive strides over the last few years

It depends what stage it is. DP had it this year. The local dermatologist removed it and sent it for biopsy, which showed it to be Stage 2. He had a plastic surgeon remove a slightly larger area as a preventative measure. He was offered optional removal of nearest lymph gland to double check it hadn't started spreading. He'll now be monitored for new moles for a few years. Later stages need further treatment. Immunology is a big thing now. It's a cancer that has had great progress in treatment.

Both were day surgeries.

@Hollyhocksarenotmessy

It depends what stage it is. DP had it this year. The local dermatologist removed it and sent it for biopsy, which showed it to be Stage 2. He had a plastic surgeon remove a slightly larger area as a preventative measure. He was offered optional removal of nearest lymph gland to double check it hadn't started spreading. He'll now be monitored for new moles for a few years. Later stages need further treatment. Immunology is a big thing now. It's a cancer that has had great progress in treatment.

Thank you for that. She is having day surgery tomorrow so hopefully will know more once her results are back. Just so cross as the Dr who did the biopsy a couple of weeks ago said he was confident it wasn't anything sinister and then this bombshell gets dropped on her. They didn't say what kind of melanoma but I believe from the pic she sent me it might be the one that spreads out rather than down. I'm so glad I made her get it checked out!

I’ve had a melanoma removed - fortunately at the earliest stage. It was also growing outwards, rather than in, and the doctor who did my minor incision also said it didn’t look sinister!
The results came quickly back that it was, and a wider incision booked.
They took the cancerous tissue, and good clear margins all round, and other than additional checks, that was that.

The ‘good’ thing about melanoma is that you can see it. So it usually gets dealt with quickly. The survival rates are really, really high.

I read mumsnet a lot, but rarely post. Please, please PM me if you or your sister want to talk about this, either pre-result, or after.

It is a strange and horrible time waiting for results, especially for something that you, the doctor, and the initial surgeon / nurse practitioner thought didn’t look sinister.

Much love

Sorry you’ve had such a shit year.
Like all these things “it depends” but I know a few people who’ve had one, had it taken out, and other that some monitoring that has been it.
Wish your sister all the best.

My mum had one about 30 years ago now which was early stages and removed surgically. She had to stay in hospital for about a week and had to have quite a big chunk out of her calf. Monitored for 5 years after but no other treatment.

She had a reoccurrence about 2 years ago and luckily was still stage 1 despite her not going to the drs until my dad basically marched her in. She had it removed in a day surgery and had to wear a lovely surgical boot but again other than regular checks no other treatment. She's just moved from 3 month to 6 month appointments.

Thank you so much everyone, it's so surreal, she doesn't sunbath, always wears factor 50 and has never, ever used a sunbed so she would be the last person I would've thought would get melanoma. Fingers crossed it's been caught early enough and we should know in a few days.

@user1471498799 thank you so much x

I’ve had several removed - it’s genetic for me. It’s killed my grandmother, three of my mother’s siblings and my cousin. My mother has also had several removed, including one that was stage 3. She had a procedure to check that it hadn’t spread to her lymph glands (it hadn’t). I’m going back to hospital next week to have a wide area excision following a biopsy the other week.

They will probably put your sister on a monitoring programme. Mine is currently annual, but has been every three months. I am absolutely covered in small scars where I have had bits chopped off me over the past few years. I know it is easier said than done, but don’t worry. They are usually found early. Have they not told your sister what hers was or what stage?

@MrsSchadenfreude

I’ve had several removed - it’s genetic for me. It’s killed my grandmother, three of my mother’s siblings and my cousin. My mother has also had several removed, including one that was stage 3. She had a procedure to check that it hadn’t spread to her lymph glands (it hadn’t). I’m going back to hospital next week to have a wide area excision following a biopsy the other week.

They will probably put your sister on a monitoring programme. Mine is currently annual, but has been every three months. I am absolutely covered in small scars where I have had bits chopped off me over the past few years. I know it is easier said than done, but don’t worry. They are usually found early. Have they not told your sister what hers was or what stage?

No, I did ask if they said what type it was but she said they just told her melanoma. She has a small surgery today to remove some more, I think it might be the wide area thing. She was sure it was just a routine follow up to confirm benign biopsy, as on 2 occassions (1 was to take photos and 1 was the biopsy) she was told they were pretty sure it was nothing to worry about, so I think it completely blindsided her so she didn't take anything in. I'll get her to write a list of questions to take with her as she doesn't want anyone to go with her today

They sometimes prefer to tell you in person. I got a bit hysterical when I got a letter saying “the earliest possible appointment has been made for you at the melanoma clinic...” I phoned up and said this was unhelpful, it could have been anything from in situ to stage 4, and I had several weeks of anxiety before the clinic.

My mum had one, she went in as a day case and they removed it. Physically she was fine but she was quite emotional afterwards.

Friend had one (stage 2) and had a fair chunk of tissue removed from the back of her leg. 12 years on, there’s been no sign of a recurrence
I also know a lady in her 80s who’s recently been treated very successfully with immunotherapy (high grade tumour)

The good news is that even in the worst case scenario (stage 4), treatment for melanoma has advanced massively in the last few years. My mum was stage 4 and her cancer had spread everywhere. It was horrific.

But she got given a new treatment that is "targeted" and at the next scan, there was no evidence of disease. It really was a miracle. It wasn't a permanent cure though but the idea was that you reduce the level of disease and then move onto immunotherapy which has much longer lasting effects. There are side effects but much less so than traditional chemotherapy.

Sadly, other things happened to my mum and she died but she was 70. The outcomes for younger people are very good indeed.

Your sister is unlikely to be at stage 4 though. Hopefully she'll just be at an early stage but just wanted to reassure you that even in the worst case, there are treatments available.

I had malignant melanoma. After removing the suspect mole this was confirmed, much to my and my GP's surprise. I then had a wide local excision, when a specialist surgeon removes a wider area of skin from the location, a couple of weeks later as day surgery with a local anaesthetic. I was montiored for 5 years afterwards, initially fairly frequently, increasing to an appointment every 6 months. I haven't had any other occurrences, though I did have another mole removed, but it was fine.

I too am not a sunbather or sunbed user, and don't burn that easily, but I do have a lot of freckles and moles. I am much more vigilant about sun care now.

With regards to your friend, be there if she wants to talk about it, perhaps offer to drive her to the hospital for surgery, or accompany her to appointments. If they have got it early it should be no more than I experienced, and hopefully she will be fine, but she may be shocked and worried so just knowing you're there for her will be a comfort. Oh and don't gossip about it to others, nothing worse than people being all dramatic when you just want to get on with things.

She's had the wide excision done today, she said they've gone quite deep, still no mention of type of melanoma or what stage but maybe they won't know that until they do the tests on what they've taken today. My sister is very much a "get on with it" person and hates the fuss, hence whe she wouldn't let me take her today. Results will be a few weeks, so I guess that's the hardest bit for now until we know. I really appreciate all of your comments, it's helping to know that there's so many positives x

It completely depends on the stage and whether it has metastasized. Some can be removed with a good margin and will require just follow up observation. If it has metastasized at diagnosis then may need chemotherapy or more likely Immunotherapy.

I had two lots of surgery- excision of the original mole and then the wider excision, which for me was about 1" around the first scar. Both done under local.

Since then I've had excision of another suspect mole, which ended up being harmless. I'm supposed to have 3 monthly skin check ups but those have all stopped since Covid. I have a telephone skin check up scheduled for November, which is likely for be a waste of everyone's time 🙄

My melanoma was on my breast, so never exposed to the sun.

@ronswansonstache

I had two lots of surgery- excision of the original mole and then the wider excision, which for me was about 1" around the first scar. Both done under local.

Since then I've had excision of another suspect mole, which ended up being harmless. I'm supposed to have 3 monthly skin check ups but those have all stopped since Covid. I have a telephone skin check up scheduled for November, which is likely for be a waste of everyone's time 🙄

My melanoma was on my breast, so never exposed to the sun.

I'm afraid I completely agree with you. She had an initial apt at the end of April when they took photos and sent it to a specialist. They said it didn't look comcerning so booked her in for a routine removal which is what she had 2 weeks ago. I do feel if she'd been able to actually physically see someone 4 months ago this would have been found sooner. Now as it stands, it's been left to grow for 4 months 😔

I’m sorry to hear about your difficult year and your sister’s cancer.

I was diagnosed with melanoma (stage 2) in 2015 after discovering a dodgy looking mole. I had a wide area excision and lymph nodes removed but still progressed to stage 4. I had immunotherapy (4 x ipilimumab infusions) and was very fortunate to have had a ‘complete response’ and no reoccurrences (so far). I have scans (CT and MRI) and skin checks every 6 months. No follow up medication or treatment.

As previous posters have said, treatment for melanoma has come on significantly in the last decade. Hopefully your sister will get some clarity on her situation soon, and I wish you both the very best in facing whatever comes her way.

Thank you @Muddybootsblister, it's been a tough one for sure. Without wanting to sound melodramatic we've been though alot, not just this year but life in general and it just feels never ending but hearing everyone's positive stories is keeping me hopeful

Wide local excision initially. My relative then was found with a raised lymph node in her groin, the original melanoma was on her leg, so all lymph nodes on her right groin were removed. She then had immunotherapy for 18 months, zelboraf was the name of the drug, as the melanoma was positive for a particular gene. As I understand, melanoma does not respond well to chemotherapy treatment but targeted radiotherapy is often used. Sending best wishes to you all

@Hangingwithmygnomies it feels like an awful thing to say but I have felt lucky I had it last year rather than this year as I was very scared at the time but was referred within all the recommended timelines and had both surgeries within 3 months of my initial dermatology appt. As PPs have stayed the prognosis for melanoma is quite positive but like all cancers it is a shock to the system and can mess with your head.

I wish your sister a speedy recovery and hope she gets all the follow treatment she needs to get better from this x

@Rememberfluffthecat

Wide local excision initially. My relative then was found with a raised lymph node in her groin, the original melanoma was on her leg, so all lymph nodes on her right groin were removed. She then had immunotherapy for 18 months, zelboraf was the name of the drug, as the melanoma was positive for a particular gene. As I understand, melanoma does not respond well to chemotherapy treatment but targeted radiotherapy is often used. Sending best wishes to you all

Thank you. My Aunt has had chemo and radiotherapy for her BC treatment, I don't know if it's the same kind of radiotherapy but should it come that, my Aunt will be able to guide her through. They've said upto 6 weeks for the results of the wide excison which feels like a lifetime away 😣