Battle Scars and Biopsies 💪

[SaltyBae]

Hi, I’m Haley. A 23 year old gal from Maine! I was diagnosed with melanoma in April 2017, and had a pretty hardcore surgery a couple weeks later in May 2017.

I had a “funny” looking black mole on my shin, I was tired of my parents nagging me to get it checked, so I went and had it biopsied. I also had a strange looking one on my left bicep (it was red and raised and about 1/4” diameter) which my derm didn’t think was any concern but I thought it was ugly and asked if she would just take it since she was already taking the one from my shin anyway.

Two weeks later, WOW am I so glad I had that one on my arm taken too. Both came back positive for melanoma. Blah blah blah I was shocked they said it was aggressive and tons of pathologists were baffled by its “aggressive” growth nature and boom 4 days later I’m sitting down with my new oncologist discussing the awesome scars I was going to be getting 👍

8 suuuuuuuuper painful nuclear injections later laying under a gamma ray camera I awaited surgery. I woke up with 5 inch long scar in my arm pit and groin, a 7 inch scar and half of my bicep missing (I call it the shark bite lol), a 4inx4in patch of skin missing from my hip, and a 4 in diameter hole in my shin (all the way down to the bone, the pictures are graphic at best).

It’s been 4 months and I’m still recovering, mostly from the lymph node stuff, ie numb left bicep and thigh. But, as of now, I’m all good. But I go to three separate specialists every 3 months for the next 5 to 10 years to track my skin very closely.

Moral of the story, be your own advocate. Also, stay positive and try to have a sense of humor with everything. Life works in funny ways!

[Sarah2508]

Thanks for sharing your story. I'm new to the group. Sounds like you've been through a lot. What stages were your melanomas?

[SaltyBae in reply to Sarah2508]

T1b stage 2A

[Stephwyatt86]

Hi There! Are you still in Maine? I live just outside of Portland and had my first melenoma removed from my calf 3 weeks ago. I am having a sentinel node removal Thursday at Maine Med. I have no idea what stage I am or how aggressive it is. I basically don’t know what is going on and don’t know what to ask. I was told I was in the intermediate range, no severe, but not the best. What can I expect from my lymph node removal? I was told it could be in the groin or behind my knee but they won’t know until the day of. I had two small kids and I’m trying to manage my expectations. Thanks!

[SaltyBae in reply to Stephwyatt86]

Hey stephwyatt! So sorry to hear about your diagnosis. I’m sure it’s been a rough couple of weeks for you. I hope that your surgery went well yesterday. I recently moved out of Maine and to Connecticut for a new job, so I go to Brigham and women’s in Boston where they have a pigmented lesion clinic that works with Dana Farber cancer institute.

Who was your doc at Maine med? I had Dr. MacGillivray who is a surg oncologist. He did a great job and I thought my experience at Maine med was awesome! Even though the sentinel node injections were the worst thing ever lol they still did an awesome job getting clear margins and making sure my skin graft healed properly.

Who was your dermatologist who caught it initially? I went to dermatology associates in Brunswick and Portland and they are all amazing as well.

I highly highly highly recommend getting referrals from your derm to the pigmented lesion clinic in Boston. I know it’s a bit of a commute but they are some great folks to add into your skin check regimen.

Also, be very vigilant about any skin swelling and irritation, it could be lymphedema. I dealt with that in my groin and armpit from getting my lymph nodes removed. I went to mercy in Portland at the jetport plaza for both physical therapy and lymphedema therapy and I couldn’t recommend it enough. There are some wonderful therapists there and they really made a huge impact on getting my swelling and pain down and getting me back to normal life! There’s also the cancer community center which offers free resources for anyone with cancer as well as their friends and families, they are about to join with the Dempsey center which is also free but is in Lewiston.

Sorry for the crazy long post but that is all stuff I wish I was told/knew about when I first went through all of this! Please, take your time with healing and be patient with yourself getting through all of this. There are some incredible resources in Portland that I was sooooo very thankful for, and I hope you’ll find them helpful as well. Don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any other questions about ANYTHING! Sending you positive thoughts and vibes ✨