Melanoma
polycounter lvl 18
Hey fellow polycounters,
Recently I've been diagnosed with Malignant Melanoma. (Cancer)I had an 8 hour surgery last month to remove 25 lymph nodes. Fortunately only 1 was infected. However tommorrow at 11am (Friday 4-1)(Oh crap it's April Fools) I have a PET scan to check if there's any Cancer anywhere else in my body. I could use some good shouts out and prayers if anyone else besides me is religious. Life has been very different for me since this happened: 3d models, texturing, internet surfing, airbrushing, etc, just seemed unimportant. I found diving back into modeling and texturing has taken my mind off it and has been very therapeutic. I don't wanna bring anyone down, it just seems to help me to talk to my friends about it. And to anyone who doesn't know much about melanoma it's not just a "Skin Cancer" it's very deadly and spreads through the body very quickly. If you have a mole that has gone weird, like changed appearance, bled or has no defined edges, get to your doc or dermatologist right away. the sooner it's stopped the better. I'm also posting this as an awareness!! It happened to me and I never thought anything like this could. It's on the rise among young people, so I don't mean to scare anyone, I'm just givin a heads up. Everyone here has been super cool-helping me with my models and I really appreciate it. I will let you know the results tommorrow. It's been really f'n skary!!!
seeya
todman
www.todd3d.com
Recently I've been diagnosed with Malignant Melanoma. (Cancer)I had an 8 hour surgery last month to remove 25 lymph nodes. Fortunately only 1 was infected. However tommorrow at 11am (Friday 4-1)(Oh crap it's April Fools) I have a PET scan to check if there's any Cancer anywhere else in my body. I could use some good shouts out and prayers if anyone else besides me is religious. Life has been very different for me since this happened: 3d models, texturing, internet surfing, airbrushing, etc, just seemed unimportant. I found diving back into modeling and texturing has taken my mind off it and has been very therapeutic. I don't wanna bring anyone down, it just seems to help me to talk to my friends about it. And to anyone who doesn't know much about melanoma it's not just a "Skin Cancer" it's very deadly and spreads through the body very quickly. If you have a mole that has gone weird, like changed appearance, bled or has no defined edges, get to your doc or dermatologist right away. the sooner it's stopped the better. I'm also posting this as an awareness!! It happened to me and I never thought anything like this could. It's on the rise among young people, so I don't mean to scare anyone, I'm just givin a heads up. Everyone here has been super cool-helping me with my models and I really appreciate it. I will let you know the results tommorrow. It's been really f'n skary!!!
seeya
todman
www.todd3d.com
Replies
good luck to you
It's these situations that cause me to question whether I should be working outside anymore, especially with summer approaching. Here's hoping the Doctor doesn't pull and April fools joke on you, and that everything is fine.
hopefully youre ok now too. good luck man and, yeah, its fuckin scary
My thoughts, prayers and wishes go out to you.
todman lives!!!
Nobody with a clue spends more than ten or fifteen minutes out of the shade between 10am and 3pm here in summer, even with light cloud cover, suncreen is really required all year around, and those without a clue tend to end up having moles cut out regularly...if they're smart enough to have their GP 'mole-map' them regularly that is.
I'm really glad you got off so lightly, todman. That's fantastic news
"In New Zealand, overall, there are an estimated 50,000 or more new cases and around 300 deaths per year from all forms of skin cancer...."
We have a population of four million. That's a lot of people dying a year from gardening, sports, walking to work, etc!
Though the visible cells don't kill them, the subsequent tumours that form throughout the body do, making melanoma a huge threat to us, given that NZ is a lifestyle mecca, with almost every form of outdoor sport and recreation situated on a few small islands right under a hole in the ozone layer.
Melonoma being a primary cancer makes it one of the scariest there is, and kiwis are paranoid about it. My grandfather died riddled with cancer, and it started with a mole on his head and a tendency to forget to put on sunscreen when he was over here on visits.
There's a campaign here that's been going in since I was a kid: "Slip, slop, slap - slip on a shirt, slop on sunscreen, and slap on a hat". I think they added something about sunglasses recently too, eyes also being prone to the carcenogenic properties of UV and all. Slide on some shades maybe. Makes sense
Wow, almost sounds like an epidemic. I'm glad that you're aware of Melanoma and other skin cancers. I wasn't; I would've caught it a lot earlier. Mine can still come back, although it probably wont I'm not taking any chances and am taking some chemo and medical trials to keep it away. I can't believe how important it is for people to get tan and have the "it can't happen to me attitude" You wouldn't believe how many fatal stories I've heard about Melanoma since my melanoma inception. A girl who was 23 died as it went straight to her brain. It's been a nightmare. Had I waited any longer, I wouldn't be here in a few months, it was on its way to my whole lymph system and then my organs. Why can't people just open their eyes and figure out that being white is a good thing!!! thanks again everyone for your kind hopes and words. I'm not goin outside again without at least 45 sunscreen!!
Why can't people just open their eyes and figure out that being white is a good thing!!!
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Not exactly. Melanocytes within the epidermis act as a natural sunscreen protecting us from harmful UV rays. They produce a pigment that protects the inner layers of tissue from damaging and developing into cancerous cells. So having a lack of melanocytes, being a whitey, is a disadvantage. Having a tan is a natural human defense of the integumentary system. The problem with the world today is that having a tan is associated with being sexy, even though is causes many to age quickly in appearance. So naturally...everyone rushes out and grabs a tan as quickly as possible. Many believe you cannot develope a nice tan until you've burnt. Stupid. Others take the artificial route, and go to tanning beds. These devices give the tan women desire, but does not give the protection from UV's as natural sunlight. Some even try spray on tan, which is fucking retarded. So it's no wonder this has become a huge concern throughout the world. The problem is overexposure, and of course the Ozone we've destroyed. Best route is to tan very slowly, and only lightly. This is how I explain to people why I'm so white...and like it that way.
The more you know, the less medical bills you pay.
Glad you're ok. I still can't believe how many lymph nodes you had removed, what kinda treatments to they put you on after that? I plan to avoid the sun a little more from now on.
I kinda freaked out myself finding the odd mole, one biopsy later and I found to be ok :P
Glad to hear you got the all clear.
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... and can now focus on my Mod building again
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Glad that you didnt lost your humor.
Oh, and while Adema isn't a Tool album, they are a poor-quality "nu-metal" band :P
I actually posted about him because there are a lot of misconceptions about melanoma, especially outside of danger areas, i.e. that it's just a topical cancer, that it takes decades to happen, that it only happens if you don't use sunscreen, etc. People don't realise that it's a serious danger, or that it can happen anytime to anyone, even if they do wear suncreen. The best defence, aside from not exposing yourself to UV beyond what is necessary is vigilence; getting your GP to draw up an annotated mole map, and monitor for any changes regularly, self-checking, and learning about what to look for.
I didn't mean to make you feel bad. I just wanted to get a message across. I'm really sorry.
I didn't mean you! It's cool, I've had a lot of other people tell me stories worse than yours about young people, your grandpa was older and I figured his case was like you descibed. You've put a lot of important info on this link and that's what's important. No harm done, you totally rock for your awareness. Also stories like yours help people. So don't worry about it at all!!
Mop, aenima was the Tool album and I disagree, they totally rock!!
Anyway, back on-topic, I need to get my molemap updated - I have a new one....on my thumb!
There are probably others too.
todman
Milla love that avatar!
piece owt
For example I am currently fostering monarch butterflies. I have ten swan plants (milkweed in the US I think), on which are currently 15 chrysalises and more than a dozen caterpillars in various stages of progress, and yesterday my first butterfly flew off to mate. Given that there were few to no monarchs in the area where I live until I started this little enterprise I think I'm having a positive impact on the neighbourhood - there are more monarchs and I'm going to suggest to my immediate neighbours that they also grow these plants.
I just like life a lot and am more content and ambitious, an odd combination I think. It's all good though
My grandfather was someone I was very close to, and he was an astonishing man. He had a prodigious political career in Sweden, was a cabinet minister for years, and even after his retirement was active in Swedish politics. He was also a fantastic father to my mother and my favourite relative. I still miss him, and think of him every time I get into our car (a classic Mercedes-Benz - he was a huge fan of MB).
Reality has a way of being full of sadness, and yet inspiring and exciting. I lost my grandfather, but he's had an indelible impact on me and my life, and that's all we can really aspire to do after all.
Frosty: thanks - it's my final design drawing for my tattoo
I don't want to sound melodramatic but I will never look at life the same either. It sounds like you had a very close relationship with your grandpa. That's cool. I remember when mine passed away and I was very say. However he was very religious and was not afraid of death. I learned from him! Boy, I'd sure love to visit New Zealand (I'd bring lots of sunscreen!!)I bet it's beautiful