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Face to face appointment, scared I have melanoma

Mouse25x
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Hi everyone, I’m new here. I don’t want to offended anyone as I haven’t had a diagnosis yet but I’m petrified I’m going to get the news. 

I’ve recently had a mole looked at by cancer specialist just pictures taken at the moment and was told I would get a letter sent out in the post detailing any outcome. I seen the picture up close when the nurse took it and it looks text book melanoma from the photo and comparing to pictures online. I’ve now had a phone call that a specialist wants to see me in person but they can’t tell me over the phone what for and I have a week to wait until the appointment and I’m riddled in anxiety over it. 
I’m 25 and a mum to a 2 year old and I’m constantly playing out scenarios in my head of ‘what if’

i guess what I’m trying to say is, if I’ve been asked for a face to face and they’re not telling me over the phone, should I expect bad news? As this is what my gut is telling me :( 

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    Hi Mouse,

    It’s easy to jump to conclusions but most specialists try to give a diagnosis face to face, whether or not the news is good or bad.
    Whichever way it goes you will have questions you need answering, even if it’s just “are you sure”. 

    Good luck
    Dave 

  • Offline in reply to davek

    Hi Mouse. 
    please try not to worry, I know it’s very frightening, as said a face to face consultation doesn’t always mean bad news, what it means is an accurate diagnosis. There are many different things it can be and it’s better to be sure. It’s also normal to prepare yourself for the worst it’s the protective mechanism of our body. Unfortunately there is the stress and anxiety that goes with it. Your obviously on the 2 week pathway which is there for protection and early quick treatment. Please let us know how you get on. Positive thoughts and crossed fingers for you. Please take care. 

  • Offline

    Hi Mouse,

    It's natural to be very anxious but firstly, it's good that you have an appointment through quickly so that you aren't left worrying for too long.

    Secondly, they won't be giving you a diagnosis because they can't do that from a photo, or from looking at with the naked eye or through a dermatascope. What they will do at the appointment is examine the mole through the dermatascope to see if there are any usual cell changes. If there aren't, your mole is fine. If there are, they will advise the mole is removed under local anaesthetic as a day patient at a future date. This will be sent for a biopsy & this is the 100% way of knowing if the mole is malignant or not.

    75% of patients referred to dermatology find that their mole/lesion was not cancerous (benign) or was dysplastic (also known as atypical or precancerous). Atypical moles look dodgy but have been caught before the cells turn malignant. Many of the 75% find that their moles are dysplastic so they've been caught early. I've had 7 moles removed over the years, one was melanoma, 2 were dysplastic the rest were benign. My brother, niece & nephew between them have had 5 dysplastic moles removed. If it is melanoma, there is a very good chance it's been caught early & will be successfully treated with surgeries so try not to think about worse case scenarios. 

    I know it's hard but try to distract yourself this week. Don't Google. Take someone with you if your anxiety is very high as you may miss something the consultant explains, otherwise take notes. Good luck and please let us know how you get on,

    Angie (Stage 3 melanoma patient since 2009)

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