Beauty

[september]

I'm so sorry about your sister, klm. I would think that saying it's okay to bake in the sun for a week, might be like sayng it's okay to smoke, on occasion?

[ShellBell]

On 4/8/2015 Klm said: My beloved sister passed away almost three years ago from melanoma, after many disfiguring surgeries and usless chemo. The doctors told me they had nothing to treat it. Melanoma is terrifying. I heard what the host said and just thought it was sad and irresponsible. Melanoma can occur any place in the body, even those areas never seen by the sun.

My heart goes out to you!! My husband was diagnosed with Stage 4 Melanoma 4 years ago and they gave him a 10% chance of survival. After 4 surgeries and a brutal round of chemo, his cancer remained. His surgeon told us he had 6 months at best. It was so heart wrenching!! His oncologist suggested we try a new form of chemo called Yervoy that had just received FDA approval. It was extremely expensive (thank goodness for insurance!) but it worked!! He's now two years in remission!! I'm so thankful!! And you are so right: Melanoma is terrifying and deadly! My husband never EVER goes out in the sun unless he's completely covered!!

[OneHappyHiker]

On 4/8/2015 Klm said: My beloved sister passed away almost three years ago from melanoma, after many disfiguring surgeries and usless chemo. The doctors told me they had nothing to treat it. Melanoma is terrifying. I heard what the host said and just thought it was sad and irresponsible. Melanoma can occur any place in the body, even those areas never seen by the sun.

I'm so sorry Klm. Yes, that's the scary thing: melanoma CAN occur any place in the body, not just on sun-exposed areas. I did recently hear they were working on a virus (herpes simplex virus 1) they inject into people who have a serious case of melanoma and in 25% it cures it. To me that's low, but they are working feverishly on a cure. It would be so bittersweet for you, but at least your sister would be looking down and smiling that a cure was finally found so no one else would have to suffer the way she did. Maybe you already know this, or someone has more information. It is terrifying.

[KLm]

We never knew what caused it. Cancer is that way sometimes, but I can promise melanoma is viscious. I appreciate the sympathy. Thank you. Although I didn't post for that reason but to add my experience to the discussion. I see nothing to be cavalier about here.

[OneHappyHiker]

On 4/8/2015 ShellBell said:

On 4/8/2015 Klm said: My beloved sister passed away almost three years ago from melanoma, after many disfiguring surgeries and usless chemo. The doctors told me they had nothing to treat it. Melanoma is terrifying. I heard what the host said and just thought it was sad and irresponsible. Melanoma can occur any place in the body, even those areas never seen by the sun.

My heart goes out to you!! My husband was diagnosed with Stage 4 Melanoma 4 years ago and they gave him a 10% chance of survival. After 4 surgeries and a brutal round of chemo, his cancer remained. His surgeon told us he had 6 months at best. It was so heart wrenching!! His oncologist suggested we try a new form of chemo called Yervoy that had just received FDA approval. It was extremely expensive (thank goodness for insurance!) but it worked!! He's now two years in remission!! I'm so thankful!! And you are so right: Melanoma is terrifying and deadly! My husband never EVER goes out in the sun unless he's completely covered!!

OMG that is amazing and fantastic!!! I hope more and more success is obtained through these newer treatments! What a great story, unlike so many more we hear about melanoma.

[OneHappyHiker]

On 4/8/2015 Klm said: We never knew what caused it. Cancer is that way sometimes, but I can promise melanoma is viscious. I appreciate the sympathy. Thank you. Although I didn't post for that reason but to add my experience to the discussion. I see nothing to be cavalier about here.

Absolutely. That new report that had come out seemed to be so disturbing about cancer in general. I didn't read it thoroughly because it was very depressing, but it said something to the effect that they really don't know what causes MOST of cancers. Apparently after all the research into all the different types, they can conclusively say that they CAN'T conclusively say what causes most. They say bad luck seems to abound, along with bad genes, and nothing like most of us thought we could do to avoid getting it in the first place.

I've often thought like a lot of you here, that so much of the world we live in is now polluted. The water we drink...good today, bad tomorrow...the food...the air. It seems we as humans need a filtration system going 24/7 because of the constant bombardment of so many carcinogenic-causing agents. It's really sad.

I'm glad you added your experience because unless something hits us close to home, we have no real way of knowing firsthand. I hope we do see a cure, and you're very right; nothing to be cavalier about.

[KLm]

Yes, I saw that they are using a modified virus, but hers was a rare form of melanoma. It is bittersweet. AWalker....I'm grateful your husband is doing so well. The doctors are amazing. The patients who submit themselves to the trials are so brave. Perhaps this is the beginning of the end of melanoma.

[OneHappyHiker]

On 4/8/2015 tigriss said:

On 4/8/2015 A Walker said:

On 4/8/2015 tigriss said:

I agree, no sun exposure is responsible without sunscreen and clothing, especially those that have had any kind of skin cancer at any age. I watched skin cancer eat a hole in my great-grandmother's forehead and the nose off of her face before she passed. There was nothing that could be done in the early 80s. She was a sharecropper and didn't have sun screen at the turn of the century, nor for my grandmother coming up. You wear clothes, sunscreen, hats, and limit your exposure. Remember that you can get sun burned on cloudy days, so wear your sunscreen everyday!

That must have been horrible for you to see her suffer like that, so visibly. I often say I wish kids would be required to view videos of what smoking, the sun, and driving under the influence can do not only to the person but also their families. Some of those new cigarette commercials blew me away. I never saw what was coming next and really took pause to think about the way these types of visuals would be viewed by kids...especially with their lives ahead of them, feeling so very invincible. Anyway, just look at what the sun is doing out west to get an idea of how very powerful it is.

We are farmers, so sun and chemical exposure is just a hazard of life. I am super fair skinned compared to everyone else. They all have the tanning of our Creek Native American ancestors while I got all the recessive genes, the blue eyes, the blond hair, the fair skin, so I have always been aware of sun exposure as it doesn't take much for me to get burned/pink within 20 minutes even with super sun screen. We apply our sun screen every hour like clockwork and 30 minutes before we go out. I have these white spots from sun burns from my childhood. It is as if the skin has lost its coloring. I wear a light, long sleeved shirt when I'm out in the yard, sun screen and my wide brimmed hat.

We had granny with us till she passed, so taking care of her everyday gave us perspective into handling sun exposure. Everyone should this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9BqrSAHbTc

It shows how much sun damage your actually have. It is powerful and will wake even the stupidest person up! Maybe that host should watch it and wake up!

My great aunt died of skin cancer that spread to her bones and her brain. Part of her problem was her vanity since she let it go to the point of needing amputation, but chose not to. She wanted God to heal her. She also took my grandfather's, her father, oxygen and pain meds from him when he was dying from lung cancer because God was going to cure him and then he would be an addict. She was wrong then and wrong till the day she died. She was the wife of a doctor, so she should have known better but allowed her strip mall church to turn her mind for her money. God can heal such things, but if God healed my grandfather, he would have also healed the addiction. The hypocritical thing is that she took her pain meds without fear of getting addicted. She died in 9 months from when they discovered the skin cancer. It was very progressive and aggressive. Even risking the amputation did not guarantee remission, but it was a high chance since it hadn't spread at that point. Once it got into the bones, it just went like wild fire. It didn't help that she used tanning beds once she left the farm furthering her sun damage and risk, but that was her choice. Most of us in the family don't use tanning beds, but self tanners. I use self tanners before going on vacation to reduce the likelihood that I will burn because my skin is tinted darker than normal. That and sun screen have really made a difference in getting pink from any exposure along with applying it every hour.

What a very interesting, but sad, story Tigriss. You got all the recessive genes! I find that to be quite amusing! Passing by farms here and there, I've often seen farmers working so hard in the noon sun. I always wonder if they are all well sunscreened because they wear long shirts and pants and hats, so I know they know about the dangers OF the sun. But the chemicals along with the sun.... you make very good points. Thanks so much for sharing that story and thanks for farming. I think we are becoming more and more aware of just how much we need people to responsibly farm, but it doesn't go without risks to the farming families. I love the beauty of the farm with the animals all around and the different buildings, but I can't imagine the blood, sweat and tears that go INTO farming.

[SandyLouWho]

On 4/8/2015 suzyQ3 said:

But a few months back, I heard this one, while presenting some anti-theft wallet, say something to the effect of how, yes, and in Europe, you really have to look out for Gypsies.

Now, either she is ignorant of the fact that she slurred an ethnic group, or she doesn't care. Can you imagine if she had said some other ethnic, racial, or religious group? No matter...it was totally inappropriate.

Have you been to Rome? Tourism is their number one industry, and theft is the second. It is sad, but the host is exactly correct. You would likely not believe what I saw in just a few hours waiting in line to get into The Vatican. The thieves set up distractions of many kinds, and then wait for a tired tourist to be less vigilant than they were warned by the tour agents to be. The thieves are exactly who she said they were ~ sad but true.

Inappropriate? Not in my opinion. I wish I'd been warned about this very issue before I got on the tour bus so that I could have been better prepared with just such an anti-theft wallet before arriving in the midst of the best con artists on the planet. I understand your shock and dismay; if I had not seen these things if for myself, I wouldn't have believed it, either.

The truth isn't always pretty, nor appreciated. That doesn't make it untrue, just a hard fact about life.

[OneHappyHiker]

On 4/8/2015 Klm said: Yes, I saw that they are using a modified virus, but hers was a rare form of melanoma. It is bittersweet. AWalker....I'm grateful your husband is doing so well. The doctors are amazing. The patients who submit themselves to the trials are so brave. Perhaps this is the beginning of the end of melanoma.

Oh Klm... that was ShellBell's hubby! It's a great story too... recovered all the way from stage 4!

Your sister....rare form ugh. So sad. But yes, hopefully this IS the beginning of the END of melanoma!!! Fingers kept crossed and prayers sent up!