Skin cancer, whose had it???
 

Just curious here. I'm sitting at home having just had my 29th skin cancer surgery. Anybody else having problems as well? I'm Scandinavian/German descent, wrong skin type to have been a "sun god" for 25 years, and now I'm paying the piper. I'm never more than six steps away from my SPF 48. Outlaw

It runs in my family, and it almost took my Dad out in the early 80's. I guess I am just waiting for the day, but I do try to be careful, somewhat. I watch the ABC's, and have had several moles removed and tested with all negative results. I wish you only the best. I would recommend not having skin grafts to cover any wounds not on your immediate face, neck, hands, or arms. I know it is all personal preference; but my Father had a piece of skin shaved off of his upper thigh to cover the large sand dollar sized hole they took off the back of his shoulder. So not only did his shoulder absolutley kill him, but his leg hurt like a bltch too, and THE DAMN GRAFT FELL OFF after 3 days.

Wow 29, I feel for you. I just had a cancerous mole taken off my forehead. I always use Bullfrog now. Now I have to go back every year to keep on top of it. Good luck to you!

third time lucky
 

3 biopsies and nothing yet luckily. So now I look like a Flats fisher when I go out. :fish: :fish:

Interesting thread, I'll be watching it closely. I've seen a fair bit of sun/UV (welding) in my 34 years. I'm becoming more aware of any small changes to my skin in my later years.

Brian

For me I found that Coppertone Sport 48 works much much better than the Bullfrong 50. Just a thought. I'm not a "pretty boy" and I don't "dance" for a living, so I could care less about the scars. I actually make fun of anyone who shows off a new tatoo too much. I get completely checked every two months, sooner if something suspicious shows up. I've got a GREAT doctor, I have every confidence in the world with him. He has several patients who have had over a hundred removed. The whole secret is treat it agressively, take no prisoners. At some point, I'll run away from home, join the circus as "SCARMAN", scare little kids, and screw old fat women. AAAAARRRRRGGGGGHHHHH. Seriously, I've been told that as long as I do what I'm doing, I have no reason to believe my life would be shortened because of it. It does get rather old afterawhile though. Woman like scars I've found out too. That's pretty cool. Thank you all for the concern, I appreciate that. Outlaw

twice removed
 

I've had to have mine removed twice and I don't live in
Fla.
I'm a little more careful now.
It's on my left sholder and resembles a bullet wound,
so thats what I tell them it is.
Hat sunglasses and spf.

Formula Outlaw,
You're one tough cookie.
29 operations and still able to joke about it.

I have several Basil Cell Lesions on my face and upper forehead. Dermatologist froze them and some came back so he deep froze them again. Both sides of my neck are permanently red from sun damage.
Thanks for the sun screen recommendation. I'll look for it today.

Not yet:) but a number of friends have. The problem is , this wasn't a problem 30 or 40 years ago now we're paying the price:crazy: .
I remember returning from vacation July 4th week 1969 and matching fore arms with a black girl I worked with. I was darker:D Of course then I took abuse as to how hard us white folk have to work on it to look like them:D :D . Anyway , I'm more careful now and keep a watch out;)

If I have a dream about a suny day I wake up burned!
Had my first basil cell removed at 33yrs old. So far so good but I was told to expect more. I was told it is from sun damage prior to my 18th birthday. JUst somthing else I can blame my parents for.

For those that don't know. This is how they came up with the idea that sunburns caused skin cancer. Go back to the early/mid 1950's when the surfing craze hit southern California. Fast forward to the early mid 1970's and these people all started coming down with skin cancer. That's how they put two and two together and came up with that sun caused skin cancer. I first heard about it and thought "rrriiiggghhhttt". And then of course I thought "that'll never happen to me". And then it did. I've had some tough ones. When they took the one off of my right cheek you could see my teeth from the outside. I had one taken off of my back that was three quarters the size of a new deck of playing cards. My forearms, which are pretty decent size, look like baseballs. I kind of actually have grown fond of all the scars. People now look at me like I might be some kind of psycho. I like that. Outlaw

Outlaw,
Yeah my wife has been diagnosed with Melanoma type, she has has all kinds things cut out of her. She had small spot/freckle on her leg.....had it biopsied & it was cancer. That little spot in her calf that had to be removed was so infected under the skin , she a chunk cut out of her calf the size of a lemon. The muscles were cut aswell & she was in a cast for 6 weeks. All that from what we belived was a little freckle. Treat skin cancer seriously! There may be a little bump or spot, but under the skin it could be the size of tennis ball & then it's too late. The cancer attaches to other organs in your body & can kill you pretty fast. Thank got she has it beat, but gets checked out every 6 months.
Don't trust dermatoligists as they like to burn things off, get them biopsied and know what you are cutting off!
Remember Outlaw "Chicks dig scars".....oh forgot your married:D
Later John

Johno, I know what you're talking about. This last one on my neck I could barely even see, it took a total of 57 stitches (internal and external). Know all about that "cutting out whole masses of meat" syndrome. Been there done that. Thankfully your wife is under control. Please tell her for me that I know what she's going through. Sometimes it gets a little scary. Then I just remember the words of wisdom from "Clint" in his movie "The Outlaw Josie Wales". "When it looks like you got no way out, sometimes you just gotta get 'mad dog mean' ". I have found that works very well for me. I just think about warring against the cancer and psychologically I "get mad dog mean" and kick it's ass. Am I scared any more? No friggin way. It's got no chance against me. With the help of my surgeon, and my own attitude, I am flat out kicking it's ass. Outlaw

Kind of funny that this thread comes up. We al talk about life jackets, safety classes, etc. but simple things like sun block and sun glasses that could save your life or eyesight arent mentioned much. My wife has a spot on her eye, its looks like a little scar. I know the name but cant spell it. Anyway, it will eventually get bigger and interfere with her vision. Its cause by eye irritants like uv light and dust (she rides horses for a living). Now she has to wear $200 sunglasses every time we go outside. Think of what the sun does to gell coat.

People have to start paying attention. The sun is now much stronger than it was 25 years ago because of the ozone layer being less. Unfortunately, that is reality. I feel bad for the younger people who are doing the same thing I did, only the price today is higher than ever.

Count my wife as a melanoma survivor. She's been fighting it for about 7 years now. Gets checked 3 times a year and they find 1 or 2 new lesions each and every year. That adds up to the current count of 12 scars- almost all on her face, neck and legs. She's been a real trooper through it all and it's given everyone in our family a new respect for the sun.....

Arks, please give your wife a big thumbs up for me. There's only one way to deal with this problem and that's head on. Currently I have 30 "skin cancer" scars, 29 surgeries and the skin graft for my ear scar. It certainly beats the alternative. Tell her from someone whose been there, keep a positive attitude and beat it.

My wife is a stage 4 melanoma survivor. It's been 2.5 years since the last surgery that removed the lemon size spot in her shin and all the lymph nodes in one leg. She is in a 5 year clinical trial that provides frequent check ups and a cat scan every year. This started a spot on her leg that she didn't have checked for a couple of months.

Do not wait to have spots checked. The surgeon said her 5 yr survival rate would have increased 30% if she would have had the spot checked and removed 2 months earlier. We now share the information we have learned from this experience with all our friends.

The doctors and surgeons said most of the damage was done before she was 18. She is a redhead and used to go fishing with her parents all the time when she was a kid. Please protect the kids with the best lotion you can find. Don't be fooled by the high numbered sunscreens that don't provide protection to both types of sun rays.

As others have said, this cancer is very deadly and should be taken very seriously.

My wife did have a skin graft from her upper thigh for her shin and it worked very well. It was about a 3" square spot.

Good luck to all the survivors out there.

Yup !!
 

Melanoma twice in the last 18 months.....and a few " battle scars" now to show for it !

I get to visit the Dermatologist every three months for two years...well worth it for early detection !

For those of us that have experienced skin cancer as well as those where it runs in the family - have your kids checked at least once each year. There are many children who are prone to melanoma - even at a very early age....a local 17 year old died recently from it as it went undetected for quite some time...a real unnecessary tragedy.

I'd like to thank everyone for sharing their personal experiences with this deadly problem. I have also found that people seem to take comfort in speaking with others who have endured the same ordeal. I suspect there are a whole lot more members who have not yet posted to this thread, and if our privacy is at issue I certainly respect that. All I can say, as I've said, anything at all looks out of the ordinary, get it checked. As dear old DAD would have said, rather bluntly I might add, better to check it and not need it than need it and not check it. (I actually changed that just a bit for the purpose here). Best of luck to everyone, and get checked. Outlaw

Hello; Guess I would have to be
one of the MOST exposed to the
problems of Skin Cancer and one
of the Lucky ones who has a
number of problems.
In 1958 I was in the Navy and
was at the Atomic Bomb test site
at Bikini-Eniwetok.
I was there for all 28 Bombs and
as part of the the Seaborne Security Teams I was exposed to
both AirBorne And WaterBorne
Radiation.
I have been run thru every test
and I will be 65 Tomorrow and
I can not beleive I made it.
I wont get on my soap box I just
wanted to say my 002.
Mike J.

Mike J, great to hear....

skin cancer
 

i know cancer..
my dad had skin cancer for 25 years, had over 30 procedures 3 major, he passed away 2 years ago of lung cancer. my aunt (his sisiter) dies 3 years ago cancer spread into her central nevous system. both my sister and myself have had basil cell skin caners removed from out face and back. i recently had 10 stiches 2 inches below my eye and several chemical burns. i am irish and fair skined. over the last 7 years or so i have been real good about "covering up" i wear high spf sun screen,t-shirts and hats... i am sure that all who are on this web site love the outdoors and being on the water.... you don't have to stop, just use good judgement the worst thing is the prolonged exposure.
as mentioned on the previous post you will not know the damage from too much sun for several years.. so now is the time to think and monitor yourself...

enough preeching...

"JC", My mother passed away from cancer of the liver at age 60. Others on her side of the family have passed from cancer. Like you said, you can continue to enjoy the things you like to do, just take precautions.

Several spots removed on arms from welding.
Several spots removed on face and scalp from sundamage.

All of the spots were biopsied as precancerous.

I just make the annual visit to the derm-digger. He's a good one, if they look the least bit suspect, he takes a "core sample" and sews me up.

Sunblock.

SPS1000 seems to be the way to go these days. Seriously . I used to go for the 0 spf dark tanning oil crap and literally try to roast myself dark all summer. When I met my wifes parents for the first time 15 yrs ago,they thought I was hispanic. They freaked when they relised I was a pastie white son of a red haired irish woman. A close friend had 21 spots removed 4 summers ago and it really got me thinking. I now boat in long sleeved t shirts,always slap a hat on when we are off plane and drown myself in top quality spf40 or higher . I had a customer lose 75 percent of his nose to melanoma and I really don't want to end up like that. Its sometimes hot in long sleeves but if you think about what gets burned the most when boating,fore arms,neck,ears,face and forehead, it only makes sence to cover what you can and spf the rest.

I am considered high risk get checked every 6 months nothing yet....

The neck is one of the worst places to get a skin cancer, particularly Squamous cell or Melanoma, as these can matastesize quickly due to all the blood arteries, veins, and vessels in the neck. I am very lucky they caught my latest one eighth of an inch away from my caratoid artery. And it was just a speck on the surface. I hadn't noticed it. Ended up costing my 57 stitches (internal and external) more. I'm now at over 2500 total stitches I've received for all my surgeries and whatever. Keep that neck plastered in sun screen.

skin cancer
 

somtimes it takes some one close to you or even a family member to get some form of cancer before you realize that it can happen to you, cancer knows no predudice. i know we all enjoy this board and like talking about the thing that we all all here for, but it is good to come down to earth and share some "real" moments that touch our lives on a personal and private level.

jc

Reading this thread has convinced me that I need to get mine removed. Doctors have been warning me for years but I have been too scared to go.
I wish you all and your loved one good health.


:)

Other than the typical mole-like signs, what other things should we be looking at when doing a self examination? I've gotten a couple of very small dry scaly patches on my forehead the past couple of years and I guess I should have them looked at.

"Reckless", they look like anything that doesn't look like anything else, if that makes any sense. Dry scaly patches are certainly one of the most common. They can appear as small red or brown spots. A melonoma will appear usually in the beginning the size of a pencil eraser, can be red, brown, black, or even blue in color. The trick of spotting a melonoma is that the outside edges are not the same, as in if you folded a pancake over the edge would reasonably match up together evenly, if you fold a melonoma over, the edges will be all out of whack. Most of mine started as either red sports or the dry scaly patches. GET THE DAMN THINGS CHECKED NOW, NOT TOMORROW, BUT FRIGGIN NOW. If it's a Basil Cell Carcinoma, that's the most common, least dangerous. Squamous Cell Carcinoma and Melonoma are a whole different ball game. They can spread, quickly if in the right are, AND THEY CAN KILL YOU. Make no mistake, they can kill you. Find a Doctor who specializes in skin cancers, not just a dermatologist. Efedex cream can help, so can freezing them with liquid nitrogen, but if the biopsy comes back either Squamous or Melonoma, don't screw around, get them surgically removed and get them gone. Outlaw

Here's a link to a page on my web site that has pictures and a few sentences about the different types of skin cancers.

http://home.columbus.rr.com/mtboats/skincancer.html

I can't agree more with Formula Outlaw about seeing a doctor or surgeon who specializes in skin cancer rather than a dermatologist.