The Political Voices of Women

(Everything you did not want to know about melanoma – and never wanted to ask)

As a 10 year melanoma survivor, I am absolutely furious about the most recent Obama ad.  Granted it is from a 3rd party, PAC, founded by Howard Dean’s brother, but still it is part of the Obama-Dean Machine.  Coming from someone with a medical background, it is a mass of abject ignorance, which is enough to make anyone who has had to deal with the horrors of melanoma – well, speechless.  I’ve seen some nasty, vicious, cruel, and vile things before in my life, but this strikes at the heart of anyone who is surviving cancer.  No matter how “minor” the stage (mine, thank God was insitu) we all live with the specter, the sub-conscious fear that they did not get it all.

A cancer survivor becomes a little paranoid about cancer spreading somewhere in the body.  A melanoma survivor is no different.  The advantage a melanoma survivor has is the fact that if the cancer is caught early like mine or like the one John McCain had, there is an excellent survival rate.  The only real danger is having the staging mis-diagnosed.  This happened to Diana Ashby, wife of astronaut Jeff Ashby.    Unfortunately she was mis-diagnosed.  If she had been able to receive treatment, properly, she would have survived much longer than she did.  Unfortunately her misdiagnosis was a death sentence. One of the things Jeff stressed to me was to make sure my insitu was properly diagnosed.

One thing melanoma survivors do is have a full body mole exam every 6 months – for the rest of their life.  John McCain has one every 3 months.  Of all the deadly cancers, melanoma is the one most easily “cured”.   Everyone – even if they do not fit into the ABC’s of Melanoma should have a 6 month body check. You could be saving your life.  I like to tell people – if you have a specific nevis (mole) and do not have it removed YOU WILL DIE.  It is my crusade.  My life was saved.  You can save yours by a simple body check.  FYI – then have every mole that could ever become cancerous removed.  I did.

Newsweek has a rundown on McCain’s history with melanoma.  Then watch the mis-leading ad.  The Democrats can’t even tell the truth about cancer.

“…Sen. John McCain’s battle with the most deadly type of skin cancer began in 1993, when doctors discovered and surgically removed a melanoma on his left arm. A second occurrence, in the middle of the 2000 Republican convention, became big news shortly after his first bid for the Republican nomination for president. Doctors removed the two new melanomas–one on his temple, another on his left arm–and at least one of his lymph nodes as well, likely to ensure that the cancer had not spread. The procedures were successful, though McCain’s presidential run was not. He is having better luck this year. Now the likely GOP nominee for the 2008 election, McCain is quick to point out that he’s been cancer-free for several years. Still, the possibility that he will be the next U.S. president has brought renewed attention to the potentially deadly disease….”

One of the dirty little secrets about melanoma is there is usually a second primary that surfaces or is found within a year or two of the original primary.  For some strange reasons dermatologists don’t tell you this.  Even more shameful is the fact that the physicians, Noah Craft and Michael Fratkin.  Fratkin is an emergency physician.  Craft is a dermatologist who is doing a study on melanoma, but is not a clinical specialist in the disease. Both physicians seem to have an agenda against John McCain.  This is disgusting and is nothing but a hit on John McCain.

“…Dr Noah Craft, a dermatologist and melanoma researcher at the Harbor-University of California at Los Angeles medical centre, said May news accounts on the McCain’s medical records were insufficient for him, other physicians and the general public to gauge the risk of recurrence accurately. “It’s clear from the reporting, before and after the brief release, that that there is a lot of controversy and a lot of unknown,” Craft said. “I think it’s important for the public to know both what is know about his melanoma, his chances of survival and the risk of recurrence.”

Craft said it was unclear what kind of advanced testing McCain was subject to. Dr Daniel Vlock, a former cancer researcher who no longer practices medicine, said news reports indicated McCain’s most recent cancer was a 2.2mm stage 2a melanoma. Vlock said research by the American Joint Committee on Cancer shows the five-year survival rate of that type of the disease is 79%. At 10 years, the rate drops to 64%.
But Vlock said that other parts of the record suggest the cancer was in stage 3B, which has significantly lower five- and 10-year survival rates of 53% and 38%, respectively. McCain was last diagnosed with cancer eight years ago. National Institutes of Health data show the five-year survival rate for white male melanoma sufferers ranges between 98% and 15%, depending on how far the cancer had spread when treated.

“The best case scenario is that he continues to age but effectively is able to perform the duties of the job,” said Fratkin. “The worst case scenario is on January 21 2009, he has a seizure at his inauguration and is found to have multiple brain metastases. There is no way to navigate that risk assessment without those records.”…”

They are not telling the truth about melanoma recurrances:

“…The appearance of a second melanoma does not necessarily carry a poor prognosis, particularly when the recurrence is local and found in an early stage. Research supports the benefits of close physician follow-up and patient education in the early detection of second melanomas. In one study, the thickness of a second primary melanoma was compared to that of the initial primary tumor. In almost 50% of cases, the second melanoma was significantly thinner than the initial melanoma.2 With earlier diagnosis, these thinner, second melanomas can be treated with simple tumor surgery and carry an encouraging prognosis for long-term survival….”

In addition – and they are lying about this also:

“…If you have had melanoma in the past, you are at increased risk for recurrence. A significant number of patients with a past history of melanoma develop a second primary tumor after a period of time. A study reviewing the data of 3310 patients with Stage I and Stage II melanoma revealed a 2.8% risk of developing a second melanoma after 5 years, and a 3.6% risk after 10 years.1 Therefore, screening for melanoma recurrence through skin self-examination and regular medical skin examinations is of the utmost importance….”

They are not telling the truth about melanoma survival rates, which are improving.
They are not telling the truth about melanoma staging.
From MD Anderson:

“…Stages of Melanoma
When you are diagnosed with melanoma, your doctor will tell you what stage melanoma you have. “Stage” is a way to describe the severity of a cancer by incorporating information about its location, size, whether it has spread to nearby lymph nodes, and whether it has metastasized to other parts of the body. In the case of melanoma, stages I and II are based mainly on the thickness of the cancer and how many layers of skin it has invaded. Stages III and IV are based on how far the melanoma has spread from the skin. Staging is based on a combination of physical examination, biopsy, and investigation of the lymph nodes and other parts of the body.
After melanoma has been diagnosed, tests are done to find out if cancer cells have spread within the skin or to other parts of the body.
Melanoma cancers are staged as follows:
Melanoma in situ, or stage 0
Does not reach below the surface of the skin.
Stage I
Stage IA melanoma is less than 1 millimeter thick and has not ulcerated. It is most likely present only in the top layer of the skin.
Stage IB melanoma also may be less than 1 millimeter thick but has ulcerated (become an open sore) and may have grown into deeper layers of the skin.
Stage II
Stage IIA melanoma is either 1 to 2 millimeters thick with ulceration or 2 to 4 millimeters thick with no ulceration.
Stage IIB melanoma is either 2 to 4 millimeters thick with ulceration or more than 4 millimeters thick without ulceration.
Stage IIC melanoma is more than 4 millimeters thick with ulceration.
Stage III
Stage III melanoma has spread to the lymph system or directly into the lymph nodes near the cancer, and may also have spread directly from the original tumor to areas more than 2 centimeters away (but not to farther lymph nodes).
Stage IV
Stage IV melanoma has metastasized to more distant lymph nodes and/or to other organs..”

Melanoma is in danger of spreading:

“…High-risk melanomas are tumors that have a high chance of coming back, or have spread to nearby lymph nodes. A tumor is considered a “high-risk” melanoma if:it is more than 4 millimeters thick (approximately 1/6 of an inch) orit has spread to the body tissue below the skin or to a lymph nodeAny melanoma that is more than 4 millimeters thick, or has spread beyond the skin, has a high chance of coming back. INTRON® A is used to treat these high-risk melanomas within 8 weeks of surgery….”

As a 10 year melanoma survivor, I find the fact that these Democratic operatives, who say they are melanoma experts, are LYING about the disease.  This is a dis-service to anyone who has ever encountered melanoma in their lives.  It is malpractice.  They are lying about how serious John McCain’s melanoma was. In fact, all three physicians are LYING about advanced treatments.  Earlier this year, CNN reported a major breakthrough in treating advanced melanoma. There is also an additional cure.  I have first hand knowledge of it.  The person I know has survived 10 years at Stage IV with a total remission.  An additional treatment for a possible cure was announced this month.

[see more from contributor SJ Reidhead at Pink Flamingo]