Another Skin Check
Four times a year I get nervous as I peel off my clothes and get ready to be scrutinized literally from head to toe. I go to 2 different dermatologists – Dr. Braun who specializes in basal cell cancer and Dr. Peck who is a national expert on melanoma.
I have long ago gotten over the mortification of standing, sitting, lying naked while these doctors look at every peculiar spot on my body. One has a set of pictures taken in the medical department of GWU. They both have years of experience and they definitely know what they are looking for. They look between my toes, in my scalp, and all other places where things could hide.
When I visit Dr. Peck at Washington Hospital Center, as I did today, I get a double-dose of scrutiny because he always has a resident who takes the first look. Then he comes in and checks again, seeing if they found the same things.
The instrument of choice for looking beneath the skin is called a dermatascope. They first apply alcohol to the place of interest and then look through this instrument, which has a light inside. They are looking to see if the darkened mole has a regular “necklace” of nodes around the edge. If they are different in color or size, then they will do a biopsy.
There are inevitable differences of opinion when you see two different doctors for the same thing. Dr. Peck asked me whether I had used the Aldara he had prescribed the last time I saw him 6 months ago. I confessed that the pharmacist had asked me if I knew that what was being prescribed was for CERVICAL WARTS! Can you imagine putting that on your face? And then Dr. Braun had commented that it would make my face look red and ugly for at least 5 weeks. Needless to say I opted out and this Rx sits unopened on my shelf. Dr. Peck launched into the research that led to the use of Aldara to treat various types of skin cancer and pre-cancer. He said he would like to wring the pharmacist's neck. He stopped short of saying the same thing about Dr. Braun. Now I have to decide once again whether to use the Aldara.
I have to laugh when they ask me, “Have you noticed any new moles or any change in size or color in older moles?” I have hundreds of these things and I long ago gave up on trying to monitor the ones I can see, let alone the ones I can’t see. Unfortunately the consequences of not catching melanoma are no laughing matter.
With this sort of business, the best you can hope for is “I don’t see a need to biopsy anything today.” With that pronouncement, I take a deep breath and reset my clock for 3 more months.
Unfortunately once you have skin cancer (I've had 5 basal cells and 4 melanomas removed), there is a great likelihood that you will get it again. It’s just a matter of time and how much sun you were exposed to 40+ years ago. Although wearing sunscreen and a wide-brimmed hat are always advisable as a precautionary measure, the damage was probably done a long time ago and it just sits there like a time-bomb ready to go off with no real warning.
I have long ago gotten over the mortification of standing, sitting, lying naked while these doctors look at every peculiar spot on my body. One has a set of pictures taken in the medical department of GWU. They both have years of experience and they definitely know what they are looking for. They look between my toes, in my scalp, and all other places where things could hide.
When I visit Dr. Peck at Washington Hospital Center, as I did today, I get a double-dose of scrutiny because he always has a resident who takes the first look. Then he comes in and checks again, seeing if they found the same things.
The instrument of choice for looking beneath the skin is called a dermatascope. They first apply alcohol to the place of interest and then look through this instrument, which has a light inside. They are looking to see if the darkened mole has a regular “necklace” of nodes around the edge. If they are different in color or size, then they will do a biopsy.
There are inevitable differences of opinion when you see two different doctors for the same thing. Dr. Peck asked me whether I had used the Aldara he had prescribed the last time I saw him 6 months ago. I confessed that the pharmacist had asked me if I knew that what was being prescribed was for CERVICAL WARTS! Can you imagine putting that on your face? And then Dr. Braun had commented that it would make my face look red and ugly for at least 5 weeks. Needless to say I opted out and this Rx sits unopened on my shelf. Dr. Peck launched into the research that led to the use of Aldara to treat various types of skin cancer and pre-cancer. He said he would like to wring the pharmacist's neck. He stopped short of saying the same thing about Dr. Braun. Now I have to decide once again whether to use the Aldara.
I have to laugh when they ask me, “Have you noticed any new moles or any change in size or color in older moles?” I have hundreds of these things and I long ago gave up on trying to monitor the ones I can see, let alone the ones I can’t see. Unfortunately the consequences of not catching melanoma are no laughing matter.
With this sort of business, the best you can hope for is “I don’t see a need to biopsy anything today.” With that pronouncement, I take a deep breath and reset my clock for 3 more months.
Unfortunately once you have skin cancer (I've had 5 basal cells and 4 melanomas removed), there is a great likelihood that you will get it again. It’s just a matter of time and how much sun you were exposed to 40+ years ago. Although wearing sunscreen and a wide-brimmed hat are always advisable as a precautionary measure, the damage was probably done a long time ago and it just sits there like a time-bomb ready to go off with no real warning.
posted by Barbara at 7:41 PM
3 Comments:
Good for you. I've never had a skin check. I should. I don't even know how one goes about starting it.
It's an annual thing for me. My mother died of melanoma. Turned out they would not have caught it prior to its metastasis anyway since the origin was likely in an unobervable spot. I recommend Yvonne Holmes (I near 17th NW), if you need a reference. Unlike Barbara, I have been lucky so far but I make an appointment every year in April. It's my birthday month and a great way to remember to make annual checkups, whether they be mammograms or skin scans.
Kristin -- You just need to make an appt with a good dermatologist. Your internist could tell you if there is anything suspicious that needs to be checked out.
Kate -- Melanoma has been shown to be passed on from one generation to the next, so you are wise to get checked yearly. You must have been smarter than I was as a teenager. Instead of sunscreen, I used cocoa butter and slowly fried in the Florida sun. Not good for later years. Thanks for the reference, but I really trust my two drs that I currently see.
Post a Comment
<< Home