Around about 9:00AM this morning, I will have to present myself to my dermatologist to be prepped for removal of yet another in a never ending string of skin cancers. This one is lodged on my left temple, adjacent to my left ear, in an area that is almost solid scar tissue resulting from the removal of at least five skin cancers in that vicinity in the past. I don’t anticipate an easy time with this one, although it may be like water off a duck’s back. Oh, well, I guess I’ll get through it but I’m damn tired of skin cancers, including the one on my back that will also be hacked away this morning. I sure feel sorry for me today.
Have you tried Efudix cream? I used to get 60 or 70 sun spots burned off at a time and various others cut off. Last time I went it was 6- it works.
Ouch!! Good on you for being vigilant about this, though.
But dude, you have GOT to get a better hobby! 
Yeah, you’ve earned the right to be sorry for yourself today!
Hope all went well, and that you have no more visits like this one!
Well, the surgeon uttered those immortal word: “We got it all.” So, I guess all is well until the next time. The only bad side is that my left ear took a lot abuse and might “look a little different when the bandage comes off.” I’ve had quite a few skin cancers removed from that general area and almost all that is left is scar tissue. My left ear is covered with bandages and tape.
God, I’m so sorry you have to go through this. Good luck.
I had just gotten home from the Doctor’s yesterday when I read this thread. It was a 12 month followup on Mohs surgery (left temple, left arm) and a six month followup on some areas that had been biopsied (basal cell carcinoma).
All was clear, so I didn’t think posting right then was a good idea. I did get about five or six blasts of liquid nitrogen on my face, so I just might recover from looking like a leper by Christmas.
I expect that treating my Irish ancestry skin to Australian sunshine as a child and to Colorado’s as an adult means that this is my life every six months from here on out. Better that than the knife, I suppose.
Use sunscreen!
I sympathize completely. A dear friend who is a lovely person inside and out has recurring skin cancers on her pretty face that need to be excised about once a year, it seems. We kid her that she needs to keep her ass nice and smooth for the skin grafts. But it’s such a hassle for her. She’s a musician, so she needs to look presentable and attractive in order to do gigs, but having holes in your face isn’t terribly conducive to being on stage, so every time she has it done it hurts her ability to make a living.
I’m glad it’s treatable, but what a pain for her. And for you.
Good luck, and be good to yourself.
LouisB, my dad is a farmer, and a redhead. He has had many, many spots removed. He has a pinhole in one of his ears from so much skin being removed.
Me? I got my red head and fair skin from him. I have a mole on my arm that I am WAY overdue to having checked out. I had it biopsied years ago. It was fine, but bigger after the biopsy. Now it’s just ugly.
Good for you for keeping up on things.
Oh,my! I was probably 13 when my father had half of his face removed for skin cancer (I’m 47 now)!
The doc took three biopsies before he bothered to have one analyzed, and diagnosed as skin cancer!!
He lived for another 30 years, and eventually, his smoking did him in.
It’s a good thing your Darling Marcie loves you, even with missing bits and pieces!
Meantime, my thoughts, prayers, sympathies and everything else I can muster are with you!
Sending healing wishes your way!
Efudex cream treats precancers, your “sun spots”, not actual skin cancers. You can’t prevent basal cell cancers or most squamous cell cancers by using Efudex cream, either, unfortunately. There are some cases where basal cell cancers can be treated with a cream- Aldara- but those are few and far between.
Skin cancer sucks, that’s for sure. Although it does give me job security.
Best wishes for fast healing, Louis.
Where do you get this?
I work for four dermatologists.
Here’s to a rapid healing.
I’m just waiting for the spots to show up on me… my Dad had one ear and quite a bit of scalp removed, and my brother had a melanoma removed last year - and I’m the fair-haired landscaper in the family.
You might well be correct about the six month check ups but let’s hope for the best. Those LN2 blasts are really fun, right? And Bullfrog sun screen is as good as it gets.
I really appreciate the good wishes sent my way, and the prayers as well. I’m supposed to remove the bandages some time today but I’ve really been postponing it; the surgeon said it would be best to remove the bandages while in a hot shower—I think I’ll need some help with it so I guess I’ll have to hit on my Darling Marcie. I’ll let you know how removing the bandage comes out.
Well, I promised to let you know the results of removing the bandages. First of all, my Darling Marcie and I are sort of on the outs at the moment so I ended up removing the bandages myself. My left ear was very swollen and extremely painful but I figured it would get better but it didn’t. When I went back one week later, the nurse in attendance refused to remove some of the stitches without the doctor being present; he came in, looked perturbed, and then very carefully removed the stitches. I got a lecture about keeping the inside of the ear full of Neosporin; I also got a prescription for an antibiotic that I take twice a day. As of today, the swelling is gone and the fleshy parts of the ear have healed nicely. But the inner ear* remains swollen and painful to touch. Putting the neosporin in and rubbing it around hurts quite a lot. Still and all, the guy who did the work is the best dermatologist I’ve even known, so I’m sure all will be well eventually.
*I mean the part of the ear that sort of funnels sound into the ear canal; I don’t mean the really tricky part with all the little bones and ear drums and stuff.
Wow, sorry to hear things are rough. I hope you’re feeling better soon.
I woke up a few days ago in the middle of the night, and rubbing my eye, there was a crust. In the bathroom I saw that my eye was welded shut at the lashes by dried blood. I soldiered on after about an hour removed dried blood from all over my nose area where the cancer was removed.
doc said I would have a lot of stitches,turns out- top to bottom, side to side almost. Stitches com out in two days.
I sunbathed so extreme, I modified swimming goggles with masking tape over the lenses
Avoid tanning or pay this price.