When the first biopsy came back abnormal, I went back to the doctor and he took another sample, going further out on the margins than he did the first time. It still showed that the margins weren't clear (meaning there was cancer showing at the edges of the sample, so more left on me), so he sent me to a specialist.
So that they don't just hack away aimlessly, I needed to go see a dermatologist that preformed a special procedure called MOES (or chemosurgery). During the surgery, the doctor removes tissues one section at a time and graphs it out in pieces. It is cut longitudinally and analyzed under a microscope so that they can see if any cancer cells are still present, and if they are, where. So, for example, if there are only cells in one corner, the doctor will know by the graph which corner it came from and how deep it goes (if he cut deep enough) so he knows where to go back and cut. So after each cut, you are patched up (but not completely), sent back to wait while the pathologist examines the tissues, then called back in if you aren't cleared. They numb you up some more, hack away some more, back into the waiting room, and so on.
(Side note, the first specialist I went to misunderstood the doctor when they asked if he preformed MOES, they thought she said "moles" so my first trip was a giant waste.)
SOOOOOO Only TWO doctors in the entire state that perform this procedure. . . The first doctor I went to took me back in [I believe] 3 times that visit before everything was clear. Fabulous. I thought that was it; I was done. In early 2010 - about 18 mths later - it started to come back. Annoyed (it was supposed to be 99% successful!), I went back to my family doctor to send out a sample again -- because SURELY I was just mistaken -- only to find out that yes, it was back.
So, back to the dermatologist I went. To the other DIFFERENT (and only other option) dermatologist this time because, well. . . I was bitter. This time it only took one trip in. Sent home, viola. . . and another 1.5 years later AGAIN. . . the spot was back.
I was beyond annoyed. Ok, I was pretty pissed. Those surgeries were NOT cheap. Thousands. . . even after insurance. 99% accurate?? What the heck?! And more-so, it was scary. It was JUST basal cell. . . but it wasn't going away!
So I'm complaining on my birth group to the ladies I love how this spot came back and how frustrated I am. . . and come to find out there is a cream out there that can treat it. Bless Bless Bless this group. . . A girl knew a guy who owns a health store and has had skin cancer, checked by a doctor, and treated with this seemingly magical cream. So I looked into it.
One cream that is starting to get it's name out there is CuraDerm. It was on the Dr. Oz show. I believe you put it on every day for several months and it gets rid of basal and sqaumous cell skin cancers. (Don't quote me). But that wasn't the cream she told me about. . . The cream I heard about and decided to try was PDQ (actually "PDQ!!" but the exclaimation points seem cheesy so let's leave them out). PDQ is an herbal skin cream that softens tissues. Essentially, it weakens the cell wall. Cancer cells are very strong, abnormal cells that the body will recognize as 'invaders' and try to fight off but simply can't. When you apply this cream and it softens the cells, it will soften the cancer cells enough that the body's immune system is able to attack, destroy, and remove the dangerous cells. You apply 2 doses (one the first day, another 24 hours later) and any bad tissue leaves behind a red bump or white blistery-type skin. This is the dead skin cells (the cancer). They scab up, dry, and fall off in another 7-10 days, leaving NO scarring (unlike the giant scar the surgery left me with). You continue to apply the PDQ cream (twice the first few days and allowing to heal before reapplying) until there is no reaction, which means there is no cancer or abnormal cells. For about $85 a bottle. . . you're done.
So I bought it, tried it, and wanted to document it. Here's my journal:
Day 1 - I applied PDQ to my temple at night. It stung really bad as soon as I put it on. I also did a test spot on my left ankle and dabbed some on a suspicious mole on my right thigh.
Day 2 - I applied immediately the next morning. This is what my temple looked like later that afternoon. The woman from the store had said to reapply the next day. . which I did. . .but then later this evening I read that it is supposed to be after 24 hours. It had probably just been 12. Whoops. So I got it reapplied a little too early. The site is a little swollen, a little sore & bothered, and maybe is started to develop some scabbing.
The mole on my thigh is just squishy (?) and really red at the base. Also a little sensitive. My test spot feels and looks totally normal.
Day 7 - Both my temple and my mole are very dry and scaly. My temple has a few small scabs, but the redness and swelling is gone. Since my mole has no scabs but is dry (and abnormal), I scrubbed [harder] and reapplied [more liberally] tonight. After speaking with the rep, I should've applied more than just a thin later and should've also let it sit for at least 15 min. So it did, along with another test spot. My first test spot on my left ankle never did anything (never stung, never got red or swollen, never scabbed), but since I didn't apply correctly the first time around I just want to prove to myself that it doesn't react with normal skin cells.
Here's what my temple looks like tonight (sorry for the poor quality! Lesson one: no pictures at night):
Day 8: As I expected, my test mole (above) was totally normal today. The other mole is red, swollen, and sore. My temple is still dry and scaly w/ 1 small scab left, so I didn't reapply tonight. I reapplied to my test mole and my yuck mole on my right thigh. This is what it looked like after the PDQ sat for 20 min:
Also tonight I reapplied to a mole on my left shoulder. It's red, swollen and sore too :(
Day 9: Did 2nd day application on my shoulder. My scabs on my temple came off, so I reapplied there, also. This time scrubbing better and applying more liberally. I tried to go outside the margins alot to make sure I got everything. Here is where I applied (you can see the tan-ish goop if you look closely):
When I took off the ointment, I had the same white ulcerative spots like I had on my mole yesterday - mostly around the upper-back portion of the lesion.
Day 10: 2nd day application on my temple. It ****burns*** like somethin' else!! And the white foamyness (that seems to be what turns to a scab) is really bad. Wowza. Let's hope I'm not mutulating myself. . . Here's a crappy shot from my computer monitor:
Day 14: The spots have all scabbed over. Pretty gross, b/c my mole on my shoulder has turned from a squishy raised mole to a hard scabby lump. Yummy. Here's my shoulder. . . kinda hard to tell whats happening, but it's the mole with a scab around it where the PDQ sat on my normal (but abnormal) skin:
Day 16: My temple has almost lost all of it's scabbing and I'm left with just a patch closest to my eye and some in the hair line. The skin underneath is pink and soft. The only part that didn't scab over was a spot in the middle that ran through my scar from the surgery.
And here's my spot on my right thigh. The mole is barely raised anymore and I've lost almost all of the scab. I'm thinking another few application and the mole will be gone all together.
Since all of the spots reacted all of the way to the edge of where I applied the PDQ, I'm going to have to apply it further out next time to make sure I reach it all.
Day 18: I got all 3 spots really gooped up. I went about 1/2" around each mole and way out into my hair line on my temple:
. . . and the next day after the 2nd application:
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| Computer shot |
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| Same spot, picture taken using camera |
I took two pictures of my temple b/c both shots are deceiving. . . the computer shot shows the white foamy skin the best and the camera shot show more detail. . . the pink in the middle is actually just pink, fleshy (presumably therefore healthy) skin. All around in and about 1"above it is all white, foamy, dead tissue. On my leg, the skin is just red and soft, except for a few spots on top of the mole (the lighter spots you see in the pic) and a few next to it. My shoulder doesn't have hardly any white spots.
Day. . . I don't even know. . . 90ish:
Ok. . . so I totally slacked off blogging, BUT it was only because, it CLEARED!! I did one more application after this last and got a small, mild reaction on my temple -- just some dry, kind of scaly skin, like I just needed some moisturizer. The next time -- nothing! I could hardly believe it.
Here is a shot I took about a month ago to show my beautiful, clean, scab and seemingly cancer-free temple!!! Amazing.
Since then, I have tested and treated a few other spots that looked fishy to me. Most recently was a spot just above my hair line that reacted badly (as in. . . alot), so I'm in the middle of clearing up that spot. But like always, some spots do nothing, others are obviously abnormal. It's really amazing and I'm totally sold.
So what now? Well, as crunchy as I may be. . . I can't just let all of the spots that have shown signs of cancer go and pretend they were never there. So those that still have something left (like a mole that had most of it killed off but there is still some left behind that isn't reacting), I plan on having biopsied and tested at my doctor's office. PROBABLY not my temple. . . since they've already hacked that so many times, I'm not sure it can handle it again. But I am curious to see what the test come back with. I'll keep you posted :)
Thank you, Thank you, Thank you Jourdan :)
For those of you interested in trying, I purchased it from Country Nutrition out of Decatur, IL. There is also a store in Greenwood, IN. Their store manager, Debi, was SO helpful and answered my phone calls and spoke to me for a long time, always happy to help me with any questions I have. We conversed some via e-mail, some on the phone, and they happily and quickly shipped it out for me with no problem. Decatur:217-877-6466, Greenwood: 317-889-1305. Owner: Neil (cnutri@sbcglobal.net).
UPDATE January 2015:
Unfortunately, the spot seems to have reappeared. I can only assume I didn't leave the cream on long enough, so the cells started to multiply again. I'm now trying Frankincense essential oils from Young Living, since it is supposed to help with the same thing, to see if that will work. I'm not holding my breath.
I did go to the doctor and had that spot on my right thigh and left shoulder biopsied, just to be sure they were clear, and they came back fine. So either the PDQ got rid of the bad cells and cleared it, or it was just crazy all along. Either way -- I was checked and I'm fine in that department.
Once I finish the Frankincense, I'm going to go back to the Dr. and have him look at my temple. Again. I really don't feel comfortable doing MOHS again (although I'm sure they would LOVE my money for the 3rd time!) so we will have to brainstorm other possibilities.
UPDATE August 2015:
Well, in June I had my right temple checked again and the cancer is still there. The Frankincense would make my skin stay healthy looking, but as soon as I stopped the scabbing and dry, flaky skin would come back. So in September, I go in to have my 3rd MOHS prodedure (and also a separate surgery for repair the following day). The doctor explained that it was multi-nuclear basal cell, so that cells aren't all next to each other and will be sporadically spread, so it LOOKS like the margins are clear in the sample but there are still outlying areas. I told him I want a "Buy Three, Get One Free" deal!!! Wish me luck.
