Even though I was diagnosed with Melanoma at 28, it will never prepare me enough to not be shocked when I hear of other young people who have developed melanoma. I know that melanoma doesn’t discriminate, and can come in such a multitude of shapes and sizes; it can even be invisible. Sometimes dermatologists can’t even recognize them, especially when it comes to younger people because it just isn’t as common.
That is exactly what happened when my friend shared that his son was diagnosed with melanoma.
13.
He is only 13 years old.
He (my friend) shared that a few years ago, his wife had mentioned a few of the moles on their son’s back to the pediatrician, saying that she just didn’t feel good about them. The pediatrician told them not to worry, that “he is too young for them to be melanoma.” So they went along with the doctor’s opinion, because who wouldn’t? We trust our medical professionals because they have spent years and years and years studying and earning the amazing responsibility of diagnosing and treating our ailments.
Fast forward to this year, the young boy’s mother again did not feel good about one mole in particular, so took him into the dermatologist for an opinion. Again, the dermatologist this time said that “the mole isn’t concerning and that the likelihood of it being melanoma was slim because of his age.” But this time his mom just had a gut feeling that it wasn’t right and pushed for it to be scraped and sent off to pathology.
It came back as Melanoma stage 0 in situ.
As I write this, I am brought to tears. Even though I have had to endure the emotional rollercoaster of my own diagnosis, I can’t even begin to imagine how I would cope with one of my kids being diagnosed with melanoma, let alone any other disease. I know that my own mom really struggled with my diagnoses. And I know that my coworker and his wife have also struggled.
His mom saved his life.
She trusted her gut and they caught it in the earliest of stages. She should be proud of herself for pushing for them to take it. She protected her baby in the best way she could have and advocated for him. The advice I give everyone is get your skin checked and trust your gut, and she did exactly that. I can’t applaud her enough.
If you don’t know what Stage 0 in situ means, here are the basics. In stage 0 in situ, melanoma has breached only the epidermis, or first layer of skin. There is very little risk of reoccurrence or metastasis, and the 5-year survival rate for stage 0 patients is over 98%. And once you catch it early, your follow up care is much more thorough, which makes it more likely to catch any other possible spots in the early stages as well.
Once his pathology came back, he got into surgery to remove the margins around the original spot, which were clear (thank gooodness!) and he will have a few other moles of concern removed for good measure and sent off for pathology.
His small mole is now replaced with a whomping 3 in long scar. He is recovering and will be back to his regular days of swimming and soccer in only a few short weeks, but with a new knowledge of preventative measures that need to be taken to prevent future occurrences.
I believe everything happens for a reason. I met my friend when I started my position at the school district office I work for, which I only started in fall of 2019. I was then diagnosed with my metastasis only a few short months later. I was able to share my diagnosis and journey with my coworkers over the past year and they were all so supportive and caring.
In my short time at my job it felt like a close work family. I felt awful when my friend/coworker told me his son’s diagnosis. I had just celebrated the end of my treatments and just recently had a clear CT Scan, meanwhile they were just beginning their journey, and processing all of the things that go along with a melanoma diagnosis.
I’m not a very religious person. I grew up in the church but we don’t attend now. But I can’t help, but believe that something bigger than myself put me on the path that I am on today so that I could be there to provide some advice and hopefully comfort and hope for their family.
I know that it is scary and it makes you feel like you have no control; I know that I found myself down the rabbit hole more times than I can count thinking of all of the what ifs and whys. But I feel like there is always a silver lining in even the cloudiest of skies. It may take a while to discover what it is, and until then, focusing on those things that ARE in your control can help you take things day by day.
I know my silver lining is that I am here to help raise awareness and provide support for anyone who is just starting their journey, in the thick of it, or moving into their lives post cancer. I feel so privileged to be here to help other and love very time someone reaches out and shares their own story or that something I have shared or posted has helped encouraged them to be more mindful of their skin.
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