Went to the Dermatologist Monday to check a constant "dry spot" on my forehead. She just called and said it's skin cancer but in early stage so they're setting me up to have it removed using MOHS procedure. I googled it and doesn't seem too bad. Only other option given was radiation which I firmly said NO. Anyone with first-hand experience with this?

I had some skin cancer cut out two years ago. Dr used local, scalpeled a big hole in my skin, sewed me up, and sent me home. Sent the sample to be biopsied. Came back as cancer. Went back in, cut a little more to make sure that he got it all, sent the sample off. Came back good. It was no issue and I never felt anything after the numbing shots.

I've had 3 MOHS and didn't love it.....hoping I don't have another skin cancer but if I do I want to try radiation.

First took half the back of my ear off down to the cartilage. Had to do a skin graft off my chest. Next two were on my face and temple. After cutting the cancer out(process took 3 trys over 4hrs wait on labs) he further cut the wound into a football shape to pull the skin together. The pulled up skin was almost the size of my pinky finger. Granted after about 6 months the scar was almost invisible.

2 for me. One on the right side of my face, at about eye level. He said there’d be no scar, though he couldn’t pretty me up, but there was no scar. Other one was on my right forearm, and they took some serious meat. Got a long scar.

64+ years of too much sun finally got me. My spot is right above my left eyebrow. She took a pretty big slice just for the biopsy. Plenty of age lines there already so not too worried about a scar. No radiation for me again as I'm still dealing with the results of throat cancer radiation and chemo from 14 years ago.

Easy peasy. I bleed through a few shirts, but I did do DIY backpack elk hunt three days later

Last Fall I had Mohs on my forehead, too. They take off a lot more than you think, but being on your forehead is a good thing. They'll sew ya back up along an existing horizontal line so it'll blend in pretty good.

When I get really hot or cold it shows up, but otherwise you wouldn't notice.

I had it last year on the back of my hand. The Mohs technique takes the minimum amount of tissue. I had a melanoma removed a couple of years ago and they took substantially more tissue. A lot depends on the size of the lesion and the depth they suspect the cancer cells go. Mine only took one pass to get it all. No scar.

Surgery clinic called this morning. June 10. Right in the middle of my 2 cataract surgeries! Going to be a busy month for me.

not a big deal, have had 6 done.

local deadener, cut it out, wait on results, maybe cut some more.

forehead, right temple twice, top of head (that one was extensive), and 2 on my right shoulder.

none of them slowed me down any.

Mine was:

cut small Nevis out, sent for pathology

came back melanoma....the bad one.

went in for the DEEPER cut of meat. Sent to pathology

came back clear

go to get chit checked quite often. Most has been skin damaged by being an idiot getting a tan ever since my youth.

USE SUN SCREEN !!!

Way too many sunburns to count. Guess it finally caught up to me. I have been pretty good about wearing a hat while out working in the sun the last couple of years though.
This really gets you thinking though, especially having already survived a serious cancer round. Not a coincidence that we're having our wills drawn up next week. 3 surgeries in three weeks beginning in June.

Thats the common saying, but research what is actually in sunscreen then decide if that's what you want to be putting on your skin.

I'm not entirely convinced that what we are putting on are skin is better than being in the sun. IMO its a lot of environmental factors among other things that is giving a rise to skin cancer rather than just straight sun exposure.


and yes, I've had basil cell


what got me off of using sunscreen was having a tube bust inside a tackle box and it strip the paint off a smithwick rouge.

Way back when, when I was in The Med Center in Houston, hoping they’d find my problem (the tumor), they gave me a big many-paged loose leaf binder. Many many personal questions and a big section was on sunburn I had as a teenager. How bad, how often, what body areas. Apparently it mattered to them, as a research hospital. But who remembers how many bad sunburns they’d had years before.

Anyway, when I was on the tennis court for many hours, before and after I retired, I used sunscreen almost all the time. I figured it was better than getting my freckled Irish skin burned.

Interesting. Mine is Squamous cell.

what got me off of using sunscreen was having a tube bust inside a tackle box and it strip the paint off a smithwick rouge.


FUNNY

I hate sunscreen and wearing hats. Long sleeve "performance" shirts don't work, they are hot as he77 and clammy. Will never wear jeans while outside in the summer unless hunting.

Not all sunscreens are the same. Even though they claim they are effective

Jimbo, you remind me of me

Just has one cut out this year that should’ve been taken care of 2 years ago. 39 is too young to be dealing with that chit.

After the local deader you won’t feel anything until it starts itching. Doc took about a half dollar size from upper neck area.

I wore a cowboy hat every day until I went to Korea in 83. Hate wearing any hat now but I do for outside mowing, pool work, etc. I was only worried about my head getting burned, mainly because I'm bald(ing), not my body. I wear shorts and sleeveless shirts year-round. I will start going to the Dermatologist every six months now...and not just because she's beautiful and a hoot to talk to.

I live in those performance long sleeves with the hoods. There are different materials and they all work differently and you need the correct one of the activity you are doing.

PFG is very hot until you sweat into it or get it wet then it excels at cooling.

Magellan is great if you’re going to be sitting and not sweating or getting wet as they breathe better but the downside is they won’t retain the moisture as long to really keep you cool.

I need to try those long sleeved ones. Thanks Wade

We need to have lunch sometime. We could have been separated at birth

Dermatologist office called earlier. Said my Blue Light Therapy was approved by Tricare. They're going to do my arms first next Thursday. After what she said and me reading up on this, I'm not thrilled.

Psst... don't tell them what Tricare actually pays...

Good luck with the therapy, sir.

Good luck, keep us posted

Also, I’m not referring to the button ups.

Had my cataract surgery pre-op yesterday and the Dr changed the first eye being done because of the upcoming MOHS procedure over my left eye. Was going to do the right one first since it was the worse one. Now it's the left eye on Monday, MOHS the following Monday, and right eye the Monday after that. My June is booked solid!

All the best, sir. Hope all goes well.

prayers

I'm sure location of surgery plays a part in it, but the Mohs I had done on my bottom eyelid last December, was zero fun and hurt like a son of a gun.

I don't wear sunscreen as often as I should, but there is absolutely no question that aside from staying out of the sun altogether that sunscreen and protective clothing are the best prevention to skin cancer. All the way back in the 80s as a kid, I was taught to use broad spectrum sunscreen with UVA and UVB protection with an SPF rating of 30+.

I have had multiple friends who get sunburned all the time and then have ended up with some form of skin cancer. Only after the cancer have they discovered the importance of sunscreen and protective hats/sunglasses/clothing.

Dayuuuum!!!! I've had several Mohs done but never there, thank God. Hope you have a speedy recovery.

All the best, AB. Hope recovery has gone well.

Wow A.B., I imagine that was terrifying. Hope you're better now. I just got back from the Dermatologist. They did the preventative Red-Light UV therapy on my forearms. Stung pretty good for a while until I put some aloe vera with lidocaine on them.

Right after Gina took the picture to show everyone, the Dr came in and said there was still cancer, so we cut some more off. They took a graft from behind my right ear and patched it up. My eye was sewn shut for 21 days after the surgery. First time in our 32 years of marriage Gina had to do all the driving. It was awesome!!!

Yes, it healed up nicely and now I don't make fun of the coaches wearing big straw hats and putting on sunscreen.

Mighty glad you are Ok. That was an awful place for surgery. And then 21 days with your eye sewn shut. Geez!

That does not look fun at all!!!

I'm going for my 6 months scan Wednesday

All good for another 6 months. need to get a couple long sleeved lightweight shirts.

Good deal!
My surgery is this Monday afternoon. Dr said she thinks she got most of it during the biopsy!

Joined the club today guys, had developed a fleshy raised skin spot on my upper right chest last year around size of a dime to nickel. Didn't think much of it until recently when it became open and irritated to wet and pressure. Anyhow, was told today to likely be Basal Cell skin cancer, numbing shot, razored biopsy and on my way until lab results come back. He said they'll cut it out about size of a quarter and stitch me up leaving a 1-2" line scar. Sounds good to me. I am a non-sun lover that wears abundant 50 spf sunscreen and hats when outside for any extended duration so just a bit disappointing getting it on my chest.

Good for you DQ for going to your doctor!! Hopefully all will be clear.

Got it done today. They got it all in the first cut, only about 2 hrs and done. 4.5-centimeter scar buried inside my frown lines. Only part that hurt was the 10 numbing shots.

Great News Jim,

Thanks! Just had my follow-up and scheduled the preventative UV treatment for my head. Wife had a chat with the Dr and now giving me grief for walking around with my arms exposed! Ordered some UV resistant long-sleeved shirts and a hat off of Amazon.

So glad they go it all.

I went to see my dermatologist this morning and they took a biopsy from the crown of my head. I will be waiting on the results, but they already scheduled me for the Mohs Surgery for July 2nd.
Between now and then I get to start the Topical Calcipotriol Plus 5-Fluorouracil on Monday for my forehead and both cheeks.

Glad you guys are having these checkups. Taking care of the problem.

Went under the knife this afternoon, nodulized Basal Cell on upper right pectoral that had been there for a year or so. He cut about 2" inches out of me, so decent size scar...Hopefully all margins are clean.

good luck dq praying for clean report

Got just this yesterday Buzz, clean margins from post op lab report, no more cutting...

I've had five or six Moh's procedures and they all were one and done. Two melanomas and a pre-melanoma, which I didn't know existed. But I have a scar that says it does.

Had one on the bridge of my nose. Not melanoma, but the after affects were the worst.