|
I made
this page for one of my best friend's Deb... who lost her ex-husband to
Melanoma on Christmas 2001 and wanted to include it on my site to make
more people aware of it. If you would like to view the rest of the
site that I made for Tim... the URL is: http://schoolman.netfirms.com/index.html
Melanoma - Skin Cancer
May
is Skin Cancer Awareness Month
1991
Tim had a suspicious spot removed from his back. We were told it was
Melanoma, but was caught in time & he just needed to see a cancer
specialist for regular check ups.
2001
We'd been divorced since 1997. Tim had back & stomach problems for
about a year. He hadn't been to the cancer specialist in awhile & the
family Doctor was treating him for acid reflux. Further testing brought
our worst fears to life. The Melanoma was back and it was STAGE 4...
The next few
months were hard on everyone who knew him. Getting hope & having it
snatched away over & over again...Melanoma was in three lymph nodes,
his intestine, and peppered in his stomach. Tim was determined and wanted
to beat the odds. He did everything he could on his own for as long as he
could. Including working, and when he wasn't able to go in, he did what he
could by phone. I helped as much as he'd let me, but he wouldn't ask for
much. He tried numerous different medicines and treatments.
Within 10
months Tim's health and hope was declining. There are no words to describe
seeing someone you love like this. No matter what you want to do, your
stuck in this place in time, and can do nothing but watch and hold back
the tears, so not to cause them more pain from seeing yours.
Early
Dec. Tim got the news
from his Doctor that nothing else could be done. His health took a nose
dive. He started falling and loosing his ability to stand up on his own.
He needed 24 hour a day care, so his parents brought him to their farm in
IL, from IN.
Dec.
20th We were told Tim had
24 hours to live. The kids and I rushed to the farm in IL. Seeing the kids
seemed to bring him back. On the 23rd, Rev. Carol came to pray with us.
She gave Tim and us the strength we needed to accept what was happening
and say our goodbyes.
Christmas
Eve Tim sat in a chair
seeming more alive than he had in days. He opened gifts, talked, laughed
and we had a wonderful Christmas. We all knew it was his goal, to make it
to the Christmas celebration, and our guts told us this would be our last
day with him.
With his
parents, oldest brother and wife and me standing beside his bed with our
hands on him, he passed in his sleep at 1:53 am Christmas Day.
There are so many
left out details about Tim's story, but my hope for writing this is to get
people to take skin cancer serious. If you've had it and was lucky enough
to get it in time, please continue your visits with the cancer specialist.
If you have a funny looking mole or anything suspicious, get it checked
out. In closing, PLEASE use sunscreen, and learn all you can about
Melanoma. I cannot stress to you enough the pain we've experienced and the
price we have paid, please take the precautions, so you will never have to
go where we have been.
What is melanoma?
Melanoma
is a disease of the skin in which cancer (malignant) cells are found in
the cells that color the skin (melanocytes). Melanoma usually occurs in
adults, but it may occasionally be found in children and adolescents. The
skin protects the body against heat, light, infection, and injury. It is
made up of two main layers: the epidermis (the top layer) and dermis (the
inner layer). Melanocytes are found in the epidermis and they contain
melanin, which gives the skin its color. Melanoma is sometimes called
cutaneous melanoma or malignant melanoma.
Melanoma
is a more serious type of cancer than the more common skin cancers, basal
cell cancer or squamous cell cancer, which begin in the basal or squamous
cells of the epidermis. (Refer to the PDQ summary on Skin Cancer Treatment
for more information.)
Melanoma
can spread (metastasize) quickly to other parts of the body through the
lymph system or through the blood. (Lymph nodes are small, bean-shaped
structures that are found throughout the body; they produce and store
infection-fighting cells.) A doctor should be seen if a person has any of
the following warning signs of melanoma: change in the size, shape, or
color of a mole; oozing or bleeding from a mole; or a mole that feels
itchy, hard, lumpy, swollen, or tender to the touch. Melanoma can also
appear on the body as a new mole. Men most often get melanoma on the trunk
(the area of the body between the shoulders and hips) or on the head or
neck; women most often get melanoma on the arms and legs.
If there
are signs of skin cancer, the doctor will examine the skin carefully. If a
mole or pigmented area doesn't look normal, the doctor will cut it out
(called local excision) and look at it under the microscope to see if it
contains cancer. This is usually done in a doctor's office. It is
important that this biopsy is done correctly.
The
ABCD's of Moles and Melanoma
Most
people have a number of brownish spots on their skin - freckles,
birthmarks, moles. Almost all such spots are normal, but some may be
skin cancers. Key warning signs of melanoma are listed below.
Be alert to irregularities in shape, edges, color and size. The
ABCD's of melanoma are as follows: Asymmetry, Border irregularity,
Color variability, and Diameter larger than a pencil
eraser.
A
- Asymmetry
Most
early melanomas are asymmetrical - a line through the middle would not
create matching halves. Common moles are round and
symmetrical.
B
- Border
The
borders of early melanomas are often uneven and may have scalloped or
notched edges. Common moles have smoother, more even
borders.
C
- Color
Common
moles usually are a single shade of brown. Varied shades of brown,
tan, or black are often the first sign of melanoma. As melanomas
progress, the colors red, white and blue may appear.
D
- Diameter
Early
melanomas tend to grow larger than common moles - generally to at least
the size of a pencil eraser (about 6 mm, or 1/4 inch, in
diameter).
Stage Information
Once
melanoma is found, more tests will be done to find out if cancer cells
have spread to other parts of the body. This is called staging. A doctor
needs to know the stage of the disease to plan treatment. The following
stages are used for melanoma:
Stage 0
In stage 0
melanoma, the abnormal cells are found only in the outer layer of skin
cells and do not invade deeper tissues.
Stage I
Cancer is
found in the outer layer of the skin (epidermis) and/or the upper part of
the inner layer of skin (dermis), but it has not spread to nearby lymph
nodes. The tumor is less than 1.5 millimeters (1/16 of an inch) thick.
Stage II
The tumor
is 1.5 millimeters to 4 millimeters (less than 1/6 of an inch) thick. It
has spread to the lower part of the inner layer of skin (dermis), but not
into the tissue below the skin or into nearby lymph nodes.
Stage III
The tumor
may be larger or smaller than 4 millimeters thick, may have spread to
lower layers of the skin, may have additional tumor growths within 1 inch
of the original tumor (satellite tumors), may have spread to surrounding
lymph nodes, and may be actively spreading to nearby areas of the body.
Stage IV
The tumor
has spread to other organs or to lymph nodes far away from the original
tumor.![]()
Recurrent
Recurrent
disease means that the cancer has come back (recurred) after it has been
treated. It may come back in the original site or in another part of the
body.
 
The Skin Cancer
Foundation
The Cancer
Information Network
American Cancer Society
Homepage
Melanoma Education
Foundation
Chemo
Angels
American Academy of
Dermatology
Victoria's
Quilts Home Page
Victoria's
Quilts is a Non-Profit Organization... if you are going thru Cancer
treatment yourself, or have a friend or loved one who has Cancer, you will
definitely want to visit this site. Its a ministry that donates
homemade quilts to cancer patients and facilities that serve cancer
patients.
Mission
Statement from Victoria's Quilts...
“Victoria’s
Quilts ministry is to provide hand made quilts to cancer patients and
cancer treatment" facilities.
"By providing
these quilts, we hope to bring physical comfort to those dealing with
cancer as well a spiritual comfort in knowing that the Lord is with them
in their struggle. This ministry, from the Lord, is accepted with a
humble heart.”
"Legacy
of Hope exists to support and encourage those who are battling cancer, and
those who love them. We have no qualifications to doctor the body,
but as we have received comfort and love from Christ, we want to be the
pipeline through which that same comfort can flow into your life and give
you encouragement and hope!"
| 