Dr. Joyce Goldstein
Outpacing Melanoma Run was the first 5K that I ever ran. My husband’s dermatology office was a sponsor and I wanted to support the cause way back in 2012. I kept running just this 5K each year. Little did I know just how this run and the cause would keep becoming so very important and dear to my heart.
I was diagnosed with a melanoma on my lower leg in 2016. Fortunately for me, the melanoma was superficial requiring only a wide excision and frequent skin cancer checkups. I was 55 years old and had been a lifeguard for 3 years in my youth in the late 70’s and early 80’s. I am “Snow White”, the fairest of them all. I would never really tan tan like others, instead my skin would freckle and sunburn. When I would go to the lake on the 4th of July, despite being out in the sun lifeguarding for weeks prior to the holiday, I would turn red. Even back then, I would use suntan lotion, Sea and Ski and Coppertone with SPF of 6 or 8, and would also put on a t-shirt over my swimsuit after a couple hours at the lake. When my sisters and I would spend a sunny afternoon laying out in our swimsuits on the lawn, my dad would tell us that we were going to get skin cancer. He was wise before his time. If he would have been alive in 2016, I could have told him that he was right.
My diagnosis also has a valuable lesson. I had a multicolored mole on my lower leg for years that I thought looked a bit suspicious. I would show it to my husband, who was a dermatologist specializing in skin cancer removal. He would tell me it was fine, nothing to worry about. After a while, I quit monitoring the mole. Afterall, I thought, what did I know about skin lesions? I was a doctor too, but my specialty was anesthesiology. Probably a few years passed, before I went to an out of town wedding for another dermatologist. The event was sort of a dermatology reunion with many of other dermatology friends. One friend, who saw my leg close up, became very concerned about my mole. My husband also examined the mole and was concerned. As soon as I got home, I had a biopsy and the new diagnosis of melanoma. I was reminded that everyone has to continue regular skin cancer screenings. That a mole may change over time and can become cancerous despite being “fine” the previous screening.
After my diagnosis, I told the rest of my family they now had a family history of melanoma. I asked them to have their skin checked for cancer. My husband found a melanoma on my brother in-law. His was much deeper and required lymph node sampling, in addition to a wide surgical incision. Fortunately, his lymph nodes were negative, and he remains free of a recurrence at this time.
My story would be incomplete if I did not mention my dear sweet mom. God rest her soul. Late in 2018, when she was 89 years old, she was diagnosed with a non-pigmented melanoma growing underneath her middle toenail. For a few years, that toenail would often bleed when the nail was trimmed. No one thought to investigate this further at the time. Only when she was started on low dose prednisone for arthritis did the lesion rapidly grow and lift her toenail. She unfortunately was diagnosed with advanced melanoma requiring a toe amputation and had positive lymph nodes and involvement of her adrenal glands. She underwent immunotherapy which decreased the size of the adrenal tumors. Unfortunately, the treatment and damage to her adrenals along with her other medical conditions was just too much. She only survived one year after the diagnosis. The lesson here is that melanomas can be flesh colored, can occur in unusual locations, and if a toenail repeatedly bleeds upon trimming, have it biopsied early.
I am a melanoma survivor. I want there to be many more survivors. I hope my story will encourage each of you to do observe your moles for changes, get regular frequent skin cancer screenings, apply sunscreen every time you are outside, and get suspicious lesions or growths examined and biopsied early.
