Skin Cancer

Fabgrandpa’s MOHS Surgery

September 9, 2014 Karen 16 Comments

This photo of us was taken in 2010. Looking at this photo, I think I can see the first skin cancer even then, on the right side of his nose. A spot just a little darker than the rest of his nose. Maybe I’m just imagining it, because I know where it appeared first. He had the first basal cell cancer removed at the VA in Prescott Arizona on July 1, 2011.

mohs surgery for skin cancer — At Mellow Mushroom in June 2014

Several months ago, we both noticed another place on his nose, this time on the bridge right in the middle. I asked him to go to the VA to get it checked out, but he said it was just a pimple. You can see it in the photo above. And yes, it did seem to go away, and come back, then go away again, several times. A couple of weeks ago, he had an appointment with a dermatologist at the VA in Birmingham. They did a biopsy on three spots, and all three came back as cancerous. There were two basal cell carcinomas and one squamous cell carcinoma, in a cluster on Fabgrandpa’s nose.

excellent cancer treatment at the kirklin center in birmingham — The Kirklin Clinic

Fabgrandpa was referred to The Kirklin Clinic in Birmingham by the VA, because the VA did not have anyone on their staff who could do the MOHS surgery that was needed. We did not know anything at all about The Kirklin Clinic, but it turns out that it is one of the best cancer treatment clinics in the southeast. This is from their website:

With over 257 exam rooms and many nationally-ranked specialties, the Clinic’s staff combines clinical care with teaching and research to produce an environment that is in the best interest of the patient. In order to tailor our treatments to our patients and families’ needs, we collaborate and communicate with them to provide them with the ultimate patient experience and highest quality care

When we were checking in to our hotel on Sunday night, there was another couple checking in at the same time. She has breast cancer, and was referred by her doctor in Florida to the Kirklin Clinic. So, we felt that we were in good hands there.

Waiting to be called back for his surgery.

On Monday, we took the hotel shuttle over to the clinic. We found out first hand that they really do take the patient’s best interests into consideration. There were four doctors, two of whom were students, and three nurses assigned to Mr. Fabgrandpa. They welcomed me to stay in the room while they operated, and must have asked me a dozen times if they could get me anything. They brought coffee and snacks, and still asked if there was anything they could do for us.

They got Fabgrandpa suited up in his open backed gown and on the table, then drew some lines and dots on his nose where they would be operating. Next, they started the anesthesia, which was shots into his nose. They did all they could to make sure it hurt as little as possible.

basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma — Ready for surgery to start

Dr. Huang was the doctor in charge. He and the other doctors perfomed MOHS surgery, which is “accepted as the single most effective technique for removing Basal Cell Carcinoma and Squamous Cell Carcinoma (BCCs and SCCs), the two most common skin cancers.” (from Skin Cancer.org website). In MOHS surgery, tissue samples are sent to the lab during the surgery, not after. The surgeon can know for sure that they have removed enough tissue right there while they have the patient on the table. Unfortunately, Fabgrandpa’s lesions were deep, so they had to take a lot of tissue to get all of the cancerous ones. Then, they had to take tissue from his upper chest to make a graft to close the two largest wounds.

Those skin patches will never match the color of his nose, but they look a lot better than the deep wounds that were there. When it heals, it will be just another sign of victory over cancer, and that is what counts for me.

If you suspect that you have a skin cancer, don’t wait to get it treated. There is a whopping 97% to 99.5% cure rate for basal cell and squamous cell skin cancer when treated with MOHS surgery.

The Skin Cancer Foundation recommends that everyone practice monthly head-to-toe self examination of their skin, so that they can find any new or changing lesions that might be cancerous or precancerous. Skin cancers found and removed early are almost always curable. Learn about the warnings signs of skin cancer and what to look for during a self examination. If you spot anything suspicious, see a doctor.

Because someone loves your cute little nose (or your big ol snozz!), do it!

Update January 2018: I wanted to add a photo of what Fabgrandpa looks like now, so you can see that even though the tissue grafts are a different color, you really can not tell he had surgery there is you don’t know.

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April Is Oral Cancer Awareness Month

April 22, 2014 Karen 51 Comments

Close to 43,250 Americans will be diagnosed with oral or pharyngeal cancer this year. It will cause over 8,000 deaths, killing roughly 1 person per hour, 24 hours per day. Of those 43,250 newly diagnosed individuals, only slightly more than half will be alive in 5 years.

In case you didn’t know, April is Oral Cancer Awareness Month. Fabgrandpa is an Oral Cancer Survivor, since 2001. The treatment for this awful disease is surgery, radition, and or chemotherapy. Fabgrandpa had the surgery, and then 37 radiation treatments in 2001. Luckily he did not have to go through chemo. Not every patient with Oral Cancer is as lucky as my husband is. Some of them die, some of them have disfiguring scars, and others lose the ability to eat using their mouth, and have to be fed through a tube for the rest of their lives.

The key to preventing a death, disfigurement, and a feeding tube is early detection of Oral Cancer. One of the easiest ways to find Oral Cancer is to just look in your mouth and nose. Ask your dentist to do a routine check for Oral Cancer when you go for your regular checkups.

Great Expressions Dental Centers in the Atlanta area will be offering free oral cancer screenings to the public throughout the entire month of April – Oral Cancer Awareness Month. Call them today to make an appointment for your free exam.

Here are ways to help prevent Oral Cancer:

Avoid smoking and any type of tobacco product. According to the National Cancer Institute, tobacco use is the leading cause of oral cancer. Tobacco includes cigarettes, pipes, cigars and chewing tobacco. Not only can use of these products cause oral cancer in the mouth but also parts of the throat.
Limit alcohol use. Using alcohol is a large risk factor for oral cancer. The more alcoholic drinks consumed daily, the higher the risk of oral cancer. The risk is about twice as high in people who have three to four alcoholic drinks per day compared to those who don’t drink alcohol, according to the National Cancer Institute
Sun exposure. Repeated exposure to sunlight may increase the risk of lip cancer, which most often occurs on the lower lip. Applying chapstick with sunscreen everyday will help prevent sun damage and cancer.
Regular dentist visits and self-examinations. Scheduling your six month exams is a great way to keep a healthy mouth. The dentist is the first line of defense in identifying dental health problems that may be associated with oral cancer, so it’s important to meet with them regularly and ask for an oral cancer screening. In addition, be sure to take a few minutes each month for a self-exam to see if you can see or feel anything suspicious including lumps; bumps; tender areas; and any white, red or grey patches. If these symptoms are found, contact your dentist immediately.
Brushing and flossing daily. Brushing twice a day with a fluoride based toothpaste is critical in removing bacteria that causes cavities, gingivitis and bad breath. Flossing sometimes is easily forgotten, however, if you don’t floss, you will miss cleaning 35 percent of your tooth surfaces. Flossing in the evening will remove bacteria that like to feed on food particles throughout the day and prevent bad breath.
Spotting early and advanced indicators. Early indicators of oral cancer include: red or white discolorations of the soft tissues of the mouth, any sore that does not heal within 14 days and hoarseness which lasts for a prolonged period of time. Advanced indicators of oral cancer include: a sensation that something is stuck in your throat, numbness in the oral region, difficulty in moving the jaw or tongue, difficulty in swallowing, ear pain in one side only, or a lump that develops in the mouth or on the neck.
The giveaway package–you’ll get all of this!

To get more information about Oral Cancer, its symptoms, and treatments options, check out the Oral Cancer Foundation website.

In help you get a good start on oral health, GEDC is sponsoring a giveaway of a great package of dental products. One winner will receive a package containing a Great Expressions Dental Centers tote bag; a Phillips Sonicare Electric Toothbrush; a Phillips Sonicare Air Floss; a travel bag with toothpaste, a toothbrush, a toothbrush holder, and floss; a Zoom Tooth Whitening Pen, a water bottle, and a lip balm.

Enter to win this package using the Giveaway Tools entry form below:

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FabGrandpa 3: Cancer 0

July 17, 2011 Karen 3 Comments

FabGrandpa had surgery to remove a basal cell carcinoma from the side of his nose on July 1. We drove down to Prescott, Arizona to the VA to have it done. We had been trying to get an appoinment since March, because the lesion kept getting bigger and looked pretty bad to us. But, the doctor did an excellent job on the surgery. You can barely tell he had surgery now that the stitches are out. This first photo shows how it looked–a big black spot on the side of his nose.

basal cell carcinoma on the nose — See that black spot on his nose? That is a basal cell carcinoma–a skin cancer.

Here is another shot of the lesion. It started out looking like a pimple that never went away, and progressed into that black spot you see here:

basal cell carcinoma — This lesion has been there for about 8 months now.

The surgery was done in the doctor’s office. They put novacaine in his nose, then cut out the lesion. It required three stitches to close it up. They put on a bandaid, and sent him on his way. He said it didn’t hurt, and it must not have because he never complained about it once.

The doctor said to take the bandaid off after a couple of days, and just use an antibiotic ointment on it until it healed. Here is what the incision looked like with the stitches in.

We went back down to the VA in Belmont, west of Flagstaff, on July 12 to have the stitches taken out, and to let the primary care doctor take a look at it. When the stitches came out, we were both pleasantly surprised because we can barely see the scar. That doctor did a very good job!

after the surgery — After the surgery, you can barely tell he had it.

If you are have fair skin, red hair, or freckles, then you should be using a sunscreen every time you go out in the sun. Even if it is a cloudy day, those UV rays can damage your skin. There are three kinds of skin cancer: Melanoma, which is the worst and most aggressive type of skin cancer, can strike anyone at any age. Basal cell is the most common type of skin cancer, and rarely metastasizes or kills, but can cause significant damage. Sqauamous cell carcinoma is the third type of skin cancer. All of you are related to FabGrandpa, get you some sun screen today and start using it! And everyone else too!

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Good News All Around

October 3, 2007 Karen 1 Comment

Jim with Owen

In 2001 when Jim was diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue, we were both devastated, overwhelmed, terrified of what the future would bring. We sat for days in a daze, just looking at each other and crying, because we did not know what to expect. I spent a lot of hours on the internet, searching for information, anything that would tell us that his diagnosis was not a death sentence.

That experience brought us closer together, and helped us decide what we really wanted out of our life together. That is, we found out that we really like being together, and enjoy each other’s company, and that no matter where we go or what we do as long as we can be together, we will be happy.

Along with all the other things we have done in the six years since his victory over SCC, we have continued to educate ourselves about the survival and recurrence rates of that cancer, and to celebrate each day we have on earth together. So, when Jim noticed a little spot on his cheek a few months ago, it was not quite as earth shattering as it was in 2001. Yes, we were concerned, but not afraid.

We signed him up for Veterans Administration medical benefits, so that he could be examined by a dermatologist. I had been asking him (well, ok, badgering him) to fill out the paperwork for VA for a about 5 years, but it took a little spat with him for him to understand just how important it was to me that he do it. So, in July he had his initial exam at the VA Medical Clinic in Hagerstown, Maryland.

They looked into every opening (and prodded into one in particular,(hahaha) and pronounced him healthy except for slightly elevated cholesterol, a low TSH level, and that pesky little spot in his cheek. They told him he needed to eat a diet low in cholesterol, but did not prescribe any medication for that. They changed his thyroid meds to a lower dose. And they made an appointment for him to see a dermatologist at the Veterans Medical Center in Washington, D.C.

Two weeks ago, we went for a biopsy of “the bump”, as Jim was affectionately calling it. Tuesday, we went back for the results of that biopsy. Dr. Cohen, the very nice doctor who is head of dermatology at that hospital, came in and told us it was Basal Cell Carcinoma, a type of skin cancer. He said there are three kinds of skin cancer: Basal Cell, Squamous Cell, and Melanoma. He said if you have to have skin cancer, then Basal Cell is the one you want to have. He said it was probably caused by exposure to the sun and by exposure to the radiation treatments Jim had in 2001 to treat the first cancer, the Squamous Cell one.

So, while we were there on Tuesday, they did surgery right there in the doctor’s office to cut out the tumor. When they did the biopsy the week before, I stayed in the room and watched, but this time I chose to go to the waiting room out in the lobby. The incision turned out to be quite large, but they got all of the tumor out, and sewed him up. They put four stitches inside, and nine stitches outside. A band-aid to cover it up, and an antibiotic ointment to apply three times a day, and that was it. We go back next week to get the stitches out.

I am amazed at how well Jim is taking this. He said it doesn’t hurt at all, even three days later. He is very glad that all he has to do this time is just the surgery. He is smiling every day, knowing that his little bump is gone.

Dr. Cohen told him that he will have to go every six months for the rest of his life for a dermatology check-up, but now that he has the VA medical, that is not a problem. He should also wear a hat or sun block when he is working outside.

So, now that I have written all this, let me just say to Jim’s Mom and Dad, yes I lied to you and told you he was fine, when he had this little bump we were a little bit worried about. But, since we did not know what it was or what the treatment would be, we just didn’t have anything to tell people. And, Jim did not want to say anything to anyone about it until he knew what was going to happen.

So, now that the bump is history, Jim will continue to go to the VA every six months for a check-up. Besides the one more trip to Washington to get the stitches out, he has to go for blood work to test his TSH for his thyroid again the last week of October, and then he will be done until April.

So, the next time he goes to the VA it will be in Arizona. We have been talking to a campground in Williams, Arizona, about a job there starting in March. The pay is pretty good, and they offer good perks and benefits, one of which is eligibility for AFLAC health insurance after 60 days. The campground is 50 minutes from the Grand Canyon, and a short drive from Sedona. I am keeping my fingers crossed that we get that job.

Also, our daughter in law, Sarah, got her PICC line taken out on Wednesday. I know she is very happy about that, and she can now just concentrate on being Mommy to Owen. He is getting cuter than ever and growing like a little weed. He is already stretching the little toes out of his one piece sleepers in size 0-3 months. He is taking 4 ounces of formula every three to four hours now, and staying awake for longer periods of time. When I talked to Sarah today, she said he was a little fussy yesterday and acted like he just didn’t know what he wanted. She offered him his bottle and he didn’t want it, and was not wet. I think he just wanted his FabGrandma!