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Newly diagnosed Subungual melanoma (of the thumb nail)

alanabanana
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Hi,

 

So I'm 31, I've just been diagnosed with subungual melanoma of my thumb nail. I'm scheduled to have my third operation in 2 days and a skin graft to cover the area, as my surgeon will be taking 5mm margins. 

 

He seems to think that it is in-situ, so it hasnt spead, but I can't help but worry how they know that without checking my lymph nodes? 

 

I've been told I'm pretty unlucky as this is a very rare sub-type of melanoma. I'm 31 years old, mummy to an 11 year old and a 9 year old. I just want to make sure that I'm not going to find myself with a re-occurring cancer down the line. 

 

Thanks guys,

Alana x

Parents
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    Hi, I'm very sorry to hear of your diagnosis, and glad your surgery went well. How long did you have to wait for the biopsy results when first diagnosed hun? Xx

  • Offline in reply to Ali_adventure

    Hi Ali,

    As this post is from 9 years ago you may not get a reply, only if they are still following the forum.

    The waiting times for results pre-Covid were usually 2 to 4 weeks. Since that time they have been getting longer for several reasons - catching up with the Covid backlog, a lack of histologists and dermatologists and more people seeking medical advice for dodgy moles (due to better education). This has all put a strain on the whole consultation/tests/results system so the time they take to be returned & assessed by the consultants is now anything from 6 to 12 weeks depending on the hospital trusts (some are quicker than others). 

    I hope this helps,

    Angie (Stage 3 melanoma patient since 2009)

Reply
  • Offline in reply to Ali_adventure

    Hi Ali,

    As this post is from 9 years ago you may not get a reply, only if they are still following the forum.

    The waiting times for results pre-Covid were usually 2 to 4 weeks. Since that time they have been getting longer for several reasons - catching up with the Covid backlog, a lack of histologists and dermatologists and more people seeking medical advice for dodgy moles (due to better education). This has all put a strain on the whole consultation/tests/results system so the time they take to be returned & assessed by the consultants is now anything from 6 to 12 weeks depending on the hospital trusts (some are quicker than others). 

    I hope this helps,

    Angie (Stage 3 melanoma patient since 2009)

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