Melanoma, Schmelanoma

Well, the month of May has been pretty emotional for the family. Last April (2009), Jenn went into the dermatologist to have an ugly mole behind my ear checked out. The main reason was vanity and that the mole was ugly, but the doctor said it was just something to keep an eye on and measure it if it looks to be changing. Fast forward a year to this April (2010) and Zach mentioning that the mole looked different and maybe it should be checked out. So, the appointment was made and the mole was removed. The dermatologist seemed concerned when she removed the spot, so it wasn't surprising when the results came back as melanoma.

This picture was taken after the first mole was removed.

After the results came in an appointment was made with a head and neck surgeon to discuss excising more of the area to make sure that all of the melanoma was removed. The surgery was scheduled for May 27th and a 3 cm area of skin was removed and sent off for testing. The doctor was possibly going to do a skin graft, but he was able to just give me a mini-neck lift and pull the skin up.

Here is my post-surgery look that I had to maintain for 24 hours...nice, huh?
I was finally able to remove the head dressings and this is what I found. I think I felt each and every one of those stitches being put in.

The stitches were removed yesterday and the pathology report showed that the skin was clean. Thank God! Now we just have to live each day to the fullest and prepare for six month full body exams.