The Words Everyone Wants to Hear (Or Read).

Well, perhaps not everyone, but once people have found themselves in a certain situation, then yes, these are the words they want to hear/read:

DIAGNOSIS: Skin nodule at right hip; excision. Spitz Nevus (epitheliod cell nevus), complete excision

MICROSCOPIC: Section reveals a skin nodule showing large epithelioid formation of melanocytic cells involving the epidermis and dermis with delicate fibrous septa. Their nuclei show benign features and have abundant eosinophilic cytoplasm. All resected margins are free of the lesion.

So there you are. Benign. Yay! I'm happy. (Also, my blood pressure has dropped--perhaps not suprising, and my weight's down by one kilo. Yay!)

It's a Spitz Nevus, and not melanoma. I don't have cancer. Thank God for that.

It's given me a damn good scare though, and there are certain parts of my life that will certainly be changing. Less time spent on worthless crap, for example.

Also, don't forget (and this really is important): skin cancer can be treated successfully if it's caught early. Check your skin regularly.

Comments

[Bladesjester]

I'm glad to hear that it was benign. I was hoping for good news.

[Euan]

Thanks. I was too.

It really brought home the fact that crappy things *can* happen, which is something that I'd never really internalized. Everyone knows it on an intellectual level, but actually understanding what it means--that's something else.

[Bladesjester]

I can agree with that. After you have a cancer scare, someone tries to kill you or you get hit by a car, etc you start to think about that sort of thing. =]

[Euan]

Zackly. Now all I have to do is try and find a way to put that feeling into fiction . . .