I went to the dermatologist today. It turned out to be a more exciting visit than I was anticipating.
I made the appointment in the first place because I had a spot on my nose that wasn’t looking right. And because Rita put the fear of God in me recently when she went in to see her dermatologist about a mole that her mother thought looked suspicious and he said, “Yeah, that’s cancer.”
On the way home she called me and said, “You WILL NOT BELIEVE THIS! I have CANCER!!!” And I gave her a lecture about wearing sunscreen ALL the time. Because I’m helpful like that.
(I’m recapping that lecture today at Work It, Mom. You’re welcome.)
So today, after the doctor diagnosed the weird spot on my nose as basal cell carcinoma and explained that while this was indeed cancer it was NOT the type that would kill me (phew) although it very well might require surgery to completely remove (gah), he numbed my nose and sliced a little piece off to send to the lab.
And then he froze two other spots, on my ear and my hand, with liquid nitrogen, JUST BECAUSE HE COULD. Awesome.
I texted Rita when I got home to tell her that I was not going to be outdone because not only did I ALSO have skin cancer but MY skin cancer was ON MY FACE OMG!!!
“We can start buying sunscreen in bulk, at Sam’s,” I told her. “In those HUGE jars that the mayonnaise comes in.”
“And we can apply it in dollops from a snow shovel!” she responded. I like her attitude.
(Go ahead, try and get that image out of your head. Good luck.)
I think it’s time for GIANT SUN HATS to come into fashion. I was just at the dermatologist on Friday where she zapped 2 things on my face. {Dear 14-Year Old Self: WEAR SUNSCREEN. Your 40-year old self will want to smack that bottle of baby oil right out of your wrinkle-free hand.}
I totally suck at this, though with my fair and freckled skin I do make an effort, so I would not be surprised AT ALL if one of the many weird spots on my body was cancer. I live in TX for pete’s sake, the sun is full force year round and I love that. But I am low maintenance…LOW…I barely wear makeup most of the time. I have never ever seen a dermatologist. I need to find one, promptly.
I had to have a cancer spot excised from my left arm about 3 years ago…. Scary. I wear 45spf in the sun or avoid direct sun altogether. AND make sure to have your Vit d levels checked!!!!! Simple blood test. People with low levels of Vit d are more likely to get cancer!
Soooooo terrifying!
I am fairly obsessive about sunscreen on my face (though of course I wasn’t as a kid), and in the summer on arms/shoulders too, but my legs are bare all summer long and since they never change color, I don’t bother to put sunscreen on them. I mean, the rest of me will get burned without it, but my legs are impervious and also snow-white so I try to let them see the sun at all times when it’s warm out in an attempt to get any color at ALL. I do sometimes worry about that.
Seriously, so scary.
I’m going to the dermatologist today…. dun dun dunnnnnnnnnn
Sending good vibes your way Susan. Also, perhaps you can just rig the shower to dispense a round of sunscreen after your morning shower, you know, like a spray tan, but with prevention…
Thanks for posting this. I hope a lot of the sunscreen is going on your boys – the most risky time for sun exposure (and sunburn) is in kids. That doesn’t mean you are off the hook from wearing it yourself, but I just wanted you to know that playing in the shade, wearing hats and putting on sunscreen (in big amounts and frequently, especially if you are sweating) is especially important for kids
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I had a melanoma at age 27 (I’m now 46). It was a tiny freckle on my back that was very deep black. The lesson here is to get checked thoroughly every year. Skin cancer is one of the hospitable cancers that announces itself like a YOU ARE HERE pin on a map. Pay attention.