Stage 0 melanoma anyone else had one?

[Hmmmmmmmmmm10]

Hello. As title, had one removed over the summer. Now glad it’s winter as feeling quite scared of the sun. Just wondering if anyone else has had one, whether they’ve had more and what they’ve done for holidays since? I have a DS aged 3 so the idea of a sunny holiday scares me as I don’t know how I could stay out the sun and be able to play with him enough. I’m all in favour of high factors and staying out the sun at peak times and have largely done this in the past, except for a couple of stupid holidays when younger.
Advice and experiences welcome.

I haven't had melanoma but I'm very fair and with lots of moles so it's always a worry for me.

I live in the tropics so protection from sun is always on my mind. I always make sure my shoulders and back are covered and I'll have suncream on underneath my clothes. You can get SPF clothing and I always take an SPF jacket when I'm going out for longer than ten minutes. I also use an umbrella if walking around in the sun for long periods.

I use makeup with SPF so my face is always protected.

I do worry though because all the suncream says they're not proven to prevent melanoma etc, only burning...

Can I ask how you discovered the melanoma?

Article from 2011 explaining how skin cancers might be caused by lack of UV and Vitamin D deficiency

Thanks for your replies.
I found it because I had an mole of concern on in my shoulder. Went to GP, asked about mole maps as I am moley and she just checked me over. Noticed one lower down on my back and sent me to the clinic for further investigation where it was removed for biopsy. Ironically the original mole is fine.

I consider myself lucky to have got it so early but unlucky as my body obviously can make these cells compared to others who've been more exposed and have no problems.
I live in northern England so for the most part the UV index is never really high so sensible coverage and high SPF will be enough. I'm now taking a big ish dose of vitamin d3 and k to top up levels.

I think me and my family will have to consider some other ways to holiday but I worry that I'm restricting them and wonder how I'll be able to enjoy things during the summer months.

Thank you Maursh, that article makes me feel a bit less like I've failed in my sun care. I have at times and been burned once but the location of the mole is an area that has seen a lot less sun over the years compared to other areas. I also wonder if pregnancy causes vitamin d depletion and that's a factor.
All that said, I'll be a LOT more careful in future.

I had one removed in 2005. Nothing since. Tbh I'm a bit lax about suncream (I know, I know) but generally dislike the sun and avoid it so probably not high risk. The doc told me that after you're clear for a few years the chances of you getting another one are not much higher than anyone else - though do double check that if you plan to rely on it!

Don't drink earl grey tea. It contains bergamot, which increases your UV sensitivity. It's banned in cosmetics. I used to drink gallons of it and wonder whether it contributed to my melanoma, especially as the dodgy mole was in a place that doesn't catch the sun (on the underside of my upper arm).

Glad your one was successfully removed!

Can I ask how you discovered the melanoma?

I know this was directed at the OP and not me, but in case it's useful for others ... I visited 3 different GPs with my weird mole and they all said it was fine. Only got referred because I insisted. My conclusion is that you know best what is normal for your body. You might have a mole that would not be unusual on another person, but which is very unusual for you - that was the case with me.

I've had melanoma. I was never a Sun worshipper so it was a big surprise. I still go abroad, but less often. I'm very careful and follow all the standard advice: cover up, stay out of the sun when it's at it's highest, wear a wide brimmed hat, frequent application factor 50 etc. I bought myself a rash vest (like a surfing top) to wear in the pool with DS, who I also keep covered up in the sun. Basically anything I do to protect him from the sun, I do for myself too now. I have started holidaying more in the UK, though that's not really to avoid the sun. If being in the sun really concerns you, you can have a great holiday here, beach holidays aren't your only family friendly option

Can you guys who've had it describe what the offending mole looked like/how and how quickly it changed?

Thanks for later replies too. Didn't know that about earl grey tea, not a huge drinker but one to remember.
Holiday wise, it's what I've always enjoyed so going to have to try new stuff which could be a lot of fun too. The beach is fairly £ friendly though.

Herbcake mine was what I think was the usual larger light brown flat mole with a newer darker splodge in it. It looked like an egg. I was told to watch for the one that stands out, larger ones, assymetric ones and any changes/symptoms.
My GP is dermatologist specialist so was really helpful.

Herbcake Similar symptoms to Hmmmmmmmmm ... A mole that was flat, a uniform colour, and maybe 5mm in diameter increased in size to about 10mm diameter, and had a dark brown centre with a lighter brown border around it. It looked like nothing else on my body, although for some people it's quite normal to have multicolour moles.

I live in Australia, and more and more dermatologist are writing in papers about the sun campaign being wrong and not showing any changes in rates of melanoma.
The people who covers themselves with clothing, hat, sunscreen have more melanomas than those working all day in the sun such as tradies, builders, gardeners, .....
Sunshine has a protective effect. Sunburn is bad, but we should all try to stay in the sun at noon for 15 min or until slightly pink .
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23237739, they also stress that melanoma very often occur in body part not very much exposed to sunshine.

And a good news for you. Not even stage 1 should be classified as melanoma as stage 0 and 1 are benign, not malignant. www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19519827 from the British Journal of Dermatology.
so enjoy all your holidays with you sun. Don't get burn, eat tons of concentrated tomato paste, keep your natural vit D up by sitting on a bench with NO protection at lunch time for 15 whenever the sun is out