Two Tuesdays ago I had an appointment up at OHSU's dermatology department.
I went in to have my finger looked at and walked out having had it frozen to high heaven, a plantar's wart on my heel painfully frozen. And a biopsy of a suspicious red mole on my neck.
So last Tuesday, while I was on vacation, I got a phone call from the dermatologist. He wanted to know if I could come up for an appointment that afternoon or the next, but preferably before the end of the week.
Unfortunately I was in Branson. When I told him I wouldn't be back until Monday he decided to chat with me on the phone instead.
I guess they grade these things with levels of "atypia". My mole has been around for...15 years? At least. I know it was hanging out on my neck back in high school. No big deal. Hasn't changed size or color or anything. But every few months it will swell up underneath it, like a zit or something is exactly right there, and then eventually it will drain and bleed and scab over and then go back to normal. But I never thought anything of it, other than thinking that it was odd that I'd get a zit in the same exact place so regularly.
Apparently this mole has been labeled with severe atypia/borderline melanoma. Not cool. And totally taking me by surprise. I mean, it's not insanely ugly looking or huge or...really anything. And to think I didn't even go to the derm for it. I was given the option of a skin check and decided I might as well since I've never ever had one done.
So now this next Tuesday (see a trend in Tuesdays here!?) I have an appointment up at OHSU yet again. Retreatment on my finger and heel. And then he anticipates spending at least 45 minutes on my neck. He wants to do a re-biopsy to make sure that it's "just" borderline and not full-fledged melanoma. And while he's at it he's going to make sure he gets clear margins since that's what he'd be doing anyhow whether it's true melanoma or not. And there are a few others that he's going to recheck and decide if they need biopsied "just in case".
So. Tuesday. I seem to have come to truly despise that day. It has not been a good day of the week in 2010 for me.
I went in to have my finger looked at and walked out having had it frozen to high heaven, a plantar's wart on my heel painfully frozen. And a biopsy of a suspicious red mole on my neck.
So last Tuesday, while I was on vacation, I got a phone call from the dermatologist. He wanted to know if I could come up for an appointment that afternoon or the next, but preferably before the end of the week.
Unfortunately I was in Branson. When I told him I wouldn't be back until Monday he decided to chat with me on the phone instead.
I guess they grade these things with levels of "atypia". My mole has been around for...15 years? At least. I know it was hanging out on my neck back in high school. No big deal. Hasn't changed size or color or anything. But every few months it will swell up underneath it, like a zit or something is exactly right there, and then eventually it will drain and bleed and scab over and then go back to normal. But I never thought anything of it, other than thinking that it was odd that I'd get a zit in the same exact place so regularly.
Apparently this mole has been labeled with severe atypia/borderline melanoma. Not cool. And totally taking me by surprise. I mean, it's not insanely ugly looking or huge or...really anything. And to think I didn't even go to the derm for it. I was given the option of a skin check and decided I might as well since I've never ever had one done.
So now this next Tuesday (see a trend in Tuesdays here!?) I have an appointment up at OHSU yet again. Retreatment on my finger and heel. And then he anticipates spending at least 45 minutes on my neck. He wants to do a re-biopsy to make sure that it's "just" borderline and not full-fledged melanoma. And while he's at it he's going to make sure he gets clear margins since that's what he'd be doing anyhow whether it's true melanoma or not. And there are a few others that he's going to recheck and decide if they need biopsied "just in case".
So. Tuesday. I seem to have come to truly despise that day. It has not been a good day of the week in 2010 for me.
oh my goodness, tif! that's really scary. i hope they find out that it's nothing!! we need a voice to voice talk soon!
ReplyDeleteThat bites. I hope that it's nothing. That they mistakenly swapped your info with the person that they were going to see after you. I hope that all those summers in the berry fields burning and peeling and burning again have nothing to do with it. love.
ReplyDeleteCrystal~we do need to talk soon! I always think about calling but it's either at like 7:45 when I've got K dropped off-and I imagine you're in the middle of school crazies yourself-or else right as I am realizing I have to pick up Keira. And then it's lunch time and clean up and then I figure it's when Jax is coming home from school so you're probably busy...I swear school is consuming my life, and it's only Kindergaten and I haven't even figured out any kind of in-class volunteering or something!
ReplyDeleteMairs~you know, I'm a bit TICKED that it's on my neck. Not the back of my neck where I burned and peeled, rinse and repeat every year. The side of my neck, where I don't think I've EVER burned!
And wouldn't you know, I've become paranoid and am scrutinizing every single mole and freckle on my body. And I have a lot. I never realized how many I have. And tonight I think I found another suspect one. Urgh.
WOW...seriously hope it turns out the by nothing!! Didn't I just talk to you today and you didn't mension this craziness...apparently we need to talk more often!?
ReplyDeleteLet me know how the retests go!
OH MY GOSH TIF, Ok, I don't know much about melanoma, so- how serious is melanoma? What does it mean to be borderline? Does that mean, potential for it to eventually be melanoma, or it is just borderline, but will never cross the line! What does all this mean? Oh my gosh, i hope you're not freaking out. Gosh, I feel really bad for not calling you today, I almost did, but instead I had a lazy day adn did absolutely NOTHING and stared at the computer all day! I should have called you. Oh my gosh, well, I'm not quite sure what to do... tomorrow is general conference, so if I don't end up calling you tomorow or sunday, then I will call you monday. If you need to talk sooner, then just call me. As long as it's not during general conference I don't care what time it is, I don't have a life, unless I'm in school and that's just Mon and Wed. Soooo I guess I will talk to you later- Thankgoodness Tuesday is soon, and you will get more answers, (I think your appt is tues? can't remember) alright- talk to you later.
ReplyDeleteand by the way- coudld you see your planters wart- because I don't know what that is- but I have a pain on the balls of one of my feet, and it feels like a bone is growing out of skin, and it hurts when I walk on it, but i can't SEE it. Do you know if that is a plantars wart? give me your info on warts haha-
ReplyDeleteOh, Tif!!! I'm praying and hoping that it is nothing.
ReplyDeleteSucky, sucky. I loved the vacations pics, btw. Esp. Scharae's popeye face! And I don't think I ever told you how much I loved your other pictures. I cried and cried.
ReplyDelete