# Skin Checks



## QuickSilver (Feb 19, 2015)

I try to get to my dermatologist every year for a complete and thorough skin check.  Being very fair skinned.. and having spent my youth striving for that perfect tan.. I have lots of freckles and moles.   It's a pretty good thing to consider.. and I recommend doing it.  The doctor gives you a really good look over.. even in personal places you wouldn't expect a cancer to be... OR in places that you cannot see yourself.   My doctor takes pictures, and measures every odd looking lesion and bump.. and removes the ones that she thinks may be atypical..   Just a thought to add to your wellness list.  Melanoma if not caught very early is deadly.


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## Ameriscot (Feb 19, 2015)

I should do that. My sister gets it done and surprised I didn't.


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## AZ Jim (Feb 19, 2015)

I would be happy to perform this check for any ladies not inclined to see a physician.  *hehehehehe*  Seriously, I should do it to as I also spent my youth being BBQ'd in the Southern California sun.


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## QuickSilver (Feb 19, 2015)

AZ Jim said:


> I would be happy to perform this check for any ladies not inclined to see a physician.  *hehehehehe*  Seriously, I should do it to as I also spent my youth being BBQ'd in the Southern California sun.



Yes.... boys need skin checks too....  Melanoma can strike anyone.    It's strange... skin is actually the largest organ of our bodies.. and the one that is seldom checked out.

True story..... Earlier this year I recommended my dermatologist to a friend and she went and the doc found a Basal Cell skin cancer on her hand.. it was just a red bump that she never paid attention to.... but the doc felt it should be biopsied... and lo and behold.


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## Falcon (Feb 19, 2015)

My dermatologist wants to see me every 6 months and I  keep those appts.

He LOVES that little tank of frozen nitrogen and zaps me with it whenever he sees something suspicious; scalp, arms, ears, back.

He knows pre-cancerous spots when he sees them.

 I burn for awhile but it finally goes away. The burn scabs finally go away after a week or so. (Sometimes I find them in my bed. LOL)


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## QuickSilver (Feb 19, 2015)

Falcon said:


> My dermatologist wants to see me every 6 months and I  keep those appts.
> 
> He LOVES that little tank of frozen nitrogen and zaps me with it whenever he sees something suspicious; scalp, arms, ears, back.
> 
> ...



Yeah.. I've had things burned off... usually only a keratosis... the dark spots and moles are taken off with a scalpul


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## jujube (Feb 19, 2015)

The last time I went for a skin check, the dermatologist was training two assistants.  He asked me if I'd mind being a guinea pig and I agreed.  Soooo, I got to stand naked on a box for almost an hour with the three of them checked every inch, and I do mean EVERY INCH of me.  Every mole and skin tag was discussed like it was the Super Bowl stats.  I figure I probably got the best skin check I'll ever have in my life.

The boyfriend has had malignant melanoma (has a 10-inch scar on his thigh as a result), so he gets the head-to-toe super scan every six months.  So far, knock on wood, all of mine have come back benign.


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## Warrigal (Feb 19, 2015)

I've had a small melanoma removed from my upper arm.
I hadn't even noticed that it was there but the doctor found it during a routine skin check.

It was no more than a freckle but quite dark, with a bit if irregularity on the edge.
Fortunately it was able to be fully removed and it had not yet started to invade other tissues.
It did require the services of a plastic surgeon to manipulate the skin so as to avoid a skin graft.


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## Mrs. Robinson (Feb 20, 2015)

I know I should be having this done as I am blonde and fair skinned and having grown up with a summer cabin on the lake,I got sunburned every single weekend. But I don`t. Putting it on my list for my next checkup. Hubby and I have a couple that we went to high school with-he graduated with him,I graduated with her,and they were married shortly after us. Last saw them at a high school reunion 5 years ago and he looked great-tan and healthy and handsome. Less than two years later he was dead-malignant melanoma. He always was a sun worshiper-loved to surf and loved to tan.


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## Ken N Tx (Feb 20, 2015)

I have had 2  Basal Cell skin cancer's removed from my face..


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## Lon (Feb 20, 2015)

Having grown up pre-sun screen/block, being fair skinned and spending lots of time in the sun and on the beaches, I now am paying the price. I go quarterly to the Dermatologist and over the past 25 years have had numerous basal cell cancers removed from my ears, nose, neck, arm, forehead, cheek. In addition I have Rosacea with occasional flare ups of what is called Acne Rosacea. Aging is sure a bitch, but it beats the alternative.


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