Melanoma & Skin Cancer support: Introduce yourself and connect

@nancyjv This is an interesting observational study. I do see additional studies have been recommended to confirm the findings so tracking the results will be beneficial. Thank you for bringing it up and all the best to you!

@blc1951: I know you mentioned your doctor was out last week due to the holiday so it sounds like the office is at least keeping you up to date on what's going on "behind the scenes" while you wait to meet in person. I suppose that can be alternately reassuring and frustrating because you still don't know for sure what the plan is!

You did say you'd been informed the biospy showed this to be Stage 2, which means it's confined to the skin, hasn't spread to the lymph nodes or other parts of the body. What I imagine the slides will show are further sub-stages: A, B or C that correlates to thickness and will likely determine the course of treatment your doctor will decide upon.

I can understand it's hard waiting for all for information and thinking ahead to all possibilities. Is that what you mean about this not being very concerning or can you explain more about that?

@grammato3 I get it once every year. Have had it done twice so far.

@blc1951. I spoke with the nurse this morning. She said the slides came in at the end of last week. She will speak with the dr and said I should ear by the end of this week. I guess it is not very concerning?

My Mayo oncologist told me about this study and the Covid vaccine. I just got my Covid vaccine today. Hope it helps with my uveal melanoma
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/nov/12/covid-mrna-vaccines-cancer-patients-prolong-life

@blc1951 Good point. As of now, there is no applicable code that has been applied for this service, which can range in price (from about $150-$500 depending on the provider) and is currently considered I&E (investigational and experimental) and/or not medically necessary as there are other less costly methods of detection - although none that may detect quite as early especially for high-risk individuals who have a prior history of melanoma, skin cancer or atypical moles.

As @jc76 has reported, I also have a significant history of several skin cancers including melanoma and will be having another Moh's surgery for BCC in a few weeks so it is worth it to me to spend the additional money to have the screening. Fortunately, Mayo where I treat in Phoenix (actually the dermatology division at the Scottsdale campus) recently obtained the Vectra 3D imaging system so I hope to get this early next year.

@blc1951, how often do or will you get this screening?

FYI skin mapping is not covered by insurance. I pay around $400 for the procedure.

@budisnothome
Thanks @budisnothome. Looks like something I may need to do soon if my SCCs keep coming and coming.

@grammato3 Thank you for the information. I do know from the biopsy that this is stage 2. I will let you know what the plan is after I hear from the dr.

@blc1951: Thank you for introducing yourself and providing this background information. I can well appreciate the anxiety you must be feeling as you await more information from your melanoma provider. It's a scary time waiting to hear the outcome; I find it helps to be prepared for all eventualities. I'll post this information from Mayo so you may be more prepared for diagnosis guidelines and treatment options if you're interested - it's not to alarm you as "invasive" can run the gamut of stages and optimistically with your diligence in skin checks it does appear you were likey to have caught this early, In any event, there would be a variety of options available to you that your doctor can discuss with you once all the results are available.
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/melanoma/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20374888
As @budisnothome summarized, skin mapping uses high resolution photography to track skin changes (moles/spots) compared to baseline photo to focus on detecting suspicious growths for analysis. This can provide for earlier detection of skin cancer.

Will you let me know next week what your doctor reported and what the treatment plan will be?