Melanoma is...

     skin cancer, and I had it back in 1996.  It was a small birthmark on the back of my left hip.  I never would have noticed it because I couldn't see back there.  I had to rely on my husband, who said, "What is that"?  I guess the birthmark must have changed.  I didn't think too much of it at the time but I went to the doctor and the first thing they said was that I needed to have it removed.  No one even mentioned melanoma.  

     I knew what melanoma was because of my two uncles, both eventually died of it.  My grandmother had it removed from her forehead.  She got it because she would stay out in the sun without a hat in the garden.  She was super careful after that and made sure that everyone had a hat on when going out into the garden.  My aunt also had melanoma on her back and had to have it removed as well.  This is everyone on my father's side of the family.  The same aunt now has a rare type of blood cancer, not leukemia.  She is terminal.  She is my favorite aunt.  She was a high school english teacher and she loved her job.  Her students would come visit her once in a while after they had been out in the real world and thanked her for helping them.  She taught me the love of reading and I passed the love of reading to my daughter.   She loved and cared for so many of us.  She has such a generous heart.

      Now I want to make something clear.  I am very white, I have red hair, and green eyes.  All these attributes do not do well in a lot of sunshine.  I have never liked the sun at all.  When I was young we did not have sun block.  There was only sun tanning lotion.  I would look for shade, because I always got sunburned bad.  We also did not have aloe vera back then so I had to make do with Noxema.  Now putting Noxema on your sunburned skin is not the best experience that I have ever had.  I have been sick with sunburn more times than I care to remember and I thank the person who invented sunblock and want to know where they were when I was young.  My point is that I did not get my melanoma from the sun as that is the most popular way to be inflicted with it.  I have, in fact, inherited mine from my father's side of the family.  He never had melanoma because he died, about a year and half after I was born.  My birthmark turned and there it was.  That part had never even seen the sun, I can guarantee that.   

      Well, it's been eleven years since the I had the birthmark removed and during those years I have had some pre-cancerous moles removed.  I keep getting more moles, as does everyone as they get older, and I have to go back and see if this new batch on my back are pre-cancerous.  I have to get completely naked and have the doctor or physician's assistant look at my whole body.  This is so embarrassing.  I really hate it but it is a small price to pay if it keeps me in the clear.  

    Please do me a favor and protect your skin and those of your loved ones with sun block.  It may be a pain sometimes but I know something more painful, losing a loved one when it could have been prevented.  Not that I had the sun exposure type of cancer but take it from me, why risk the pain at all if you don't have to.