Hi Peeps,

I post here at the request of Mineral 1 who made a good point that this be shared with our poley cousins as it effects us all.

After having my 2nd annual visit to the skin cancer clinic, for the first time I have had to have 3 biopsies taken of skin cancers from beside my eye, middle of my back and right shoulder. All three were basal cell carcinoma, a form of skin cancer which in it's early stages, if detected early enough, can usually be treated easily. I await the results with a certain amount of concern.

Tina also had a Basal Cell Carcinoma biopsied from her cheek. They trewated hers with the electro thingumubob and some special cancer cream. She should be fine.

If left unchecked BCC can develop into melanoma. Melanoma is a rapid spreading, aggressive form of cancer which grows inwardly and infects the lymph system which can then spread the cancer cells to all parts of the body including internal organs. This is serious and can be fatal.

There seems to be a lot of riders riding in just harness and boardies nowadays 'caus it feels good and looks cool. In our sun this doesn't make much sense. I always used to think I would get skin cancer but much later in life, I was wrong and it scares the sh!t out of me. I wear sunscreen and a hat, long sleeve shirts etc and rarely get roasted, but I do get too much sun as do most of us.

Don't think just because you're young or have darker skin that it wont happen to you. Wear a rashie, sunscreen up and even more importantly, get a yearly check up. I started thinking about staying out of the sun and off the beach, maybe a new sport .... but I can't, I was born for the beach and the water lifestyle as I'm sure most of you are too. I will have checkups at my Doc's request every 6 months from now on in. I love the beach and the sun, I just don't wanna die from it.

Don't wait 'til they're slicing pieces off of you for biopsy before doing something about it. Sorry for such a downer of a thread, I just reckon it's important and I can't ever remember seeing a thread on this before.

Good winds,

heres the hot tip from a former melanoma sufferer ( stage 2 aggressive)

dont go to skin cancer clinics!!! these places bill medicare for chopping anything suspicious out of your body!!!!!!! THATS WHAT THEIR JOB IS. I will add I have been told this by several folk in the medical industry, obviously not owners or partners of specific skin cancer clinics.

Become a regular visitor to your own GP and make him aware of your sun filled activities, if in doubt get regular blood tests to screen for anything suspicious in the blood count. Your GP is not going to chop out willy nilly carcenomas. My melanoma was detected by a GP, removed along with a big section of my back 15 years ago. I nievely went to a skin cancer clinic a few years back and had 8 suspicious spots removed, all clear, but now my back is peppered with scars, my GP upon discovery of the scars was mortified! and then explained to me how these clinics work. SO, I see my GP every 6 months for a body and gland check, blood test every 12 months for C count ananlysis, use sunblocks, zinc and rash shirt, wear a hat when not on the water rigging etc, and enjoy the qld summer surfing or windsurfing every day.

Im sure what I say here will be in dispute with a few of you, but... its my take and opinion.

Have a good summer!

Regarding getting checked regularly, JUST DO IT.
Ive been in the sun all my life and at the urging of a mate I got checked. Nothing then except quite a few zaps. Got checked again recently as I was suspicious of a few spots and lumps.
The doc found one on my forehead, did a biopsy and what do you know, a squama (spelling?) cell. A week later Im operated on, quite a bit of forhead gone and 6 stitches later all's well (I hope).
Sticthes come out today.
So dont be lazy like I was,get checked over, whether it be by your GP or a clinic, as long as you do it. Makes you really think when you get home and your kids are really worried as they have the skin cancer thing really pushed at them in school these days.
Wear a rashie, sunscreen and a hat on and off the water.
better to be safe than sorry.

MD
just heard on the radio that the government is cracking down on these skin care places for doing unnecessary procdures

I agree..do it. I used to get back from Maui every year and get 50-60 liqid nitrogen zaps off my arms and head. Now compulsory 6 month checkups. I don't know if I'm getting ripped off or not, but I'm not going to stop going now.
My skin is a mass of red blotches now. As a fair skinnned, redheaded kid with freckles trying to get a tan like my mates, I used to cop a lot of burning. It never worked...red, peel, still white. In those days it was always known as a "healthy tan". Tanning oils everywhere.
These days it's long sleeves and a hat for me, even though the damage was done all those years ago.

yes three massive holes cut in my head and skin stretched back together and sewn...i guess like a forehead face lift.

i too think this is a stunt by cancer surgeries to get work..even though my GP sent me there the affected area was only a "dot" but they removed acres of meat...

and the results came back no cancer as such...
good news but what about the missing meat...
still who do you believe anyway...

although the first time years before the surgeon tried to explain it went deep as they apparently are like an iceberg...all under water/skin .....

I dont remember any of them taking an actual biopsy...i could be wrong though.

who is honest...dont most GPs refer you to a skin cancer clinic anyway....

I too tried to question the surgeon or doctor cutting out this "fillet of rusty"....
but they just stay stoney faced...

do get anything and everything checked but find honesty in this medicine show we call public health.

I will say that whenever these "dots" on my forehead were exposed to the sun I would get extreme localised pain straight from each "dot" to my brain as if tendricles were shooting into my head...
so from that point of view I considered they were deadly....
even after the operation for months I still got lesser shooting pain from the area but now not as such...so perhaps there was a good reason to remove them.

mind you Ive always wore hats.....but i believe hats dont solve the problem its also the reflected glare from the water and sand that is just as deadly.....UV must still be able to bounce from this...or the glare weakens /burns the area so when your head is actually exposed it is already prepped for the UV damage.

Damn I wish i still had that rich head of hair i had as a kid.
The best protection to sunburn of the forehead in most cases.

and like yuk, what the hell would anyone want do do with meat from you festering old pricks!

hey greeny, maybe the clinics are all banding together to make some funky skin suit, albeit a bit scaly, ala Silence of the Lambs.

Hi Guys,

I had the results back from my biopsies yesterday. One on my back was not cancerous, one on my shoulder was, but has been removed completely by the biopsy an some electro thingumabob treatment. The one beside my eye though is cancerous and must be removed.

I have told the Skin clinic guy I wanted a second opinion by a plastic surgeon or Dermatologist and he seemed ok with that although he was emphatic that it was only a quick cut and stitch and no scaring would be evident. But after the stories above, I thought I would get another look anyways, it always pays to check.

I'm glad this thread has received such a response and hopefully people book appointments as a result. It could save a life!

Good winds to all,

true that

quote:

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feedback? Do they impact the vision etc? Should I consider a helmet instead? Do you get hot wearing a helmet?

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I have a black gath, and yes it got very hot so I've sprayed it white, and that is temp neutral.
Hearing is restricted a bit, I think the newer ones have an adjustable ear opening, closed to protect eardrums in a crash, (if you hit water hard with side of head you can perforate an ear drum), open so you can hear.
The other thing with helmets is increased head area, puts more strain on the neck in a head first crash.
But I wear one windsurfing and surfing all the time, protects my bald head from sun and flying rig.

quote:

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Originally posted by Jakub


Tovarysc Kremlyn,

Ja neznaju sto ty realny ruskij. Ja vsigda dumal sto sovetskij celovek silnoj kapitalisticeskogo i burzoaznogo solnca!

Tobe nado dumat o covetskoj rodine, partii, rabotnikov, zemedelcov i rabotujsec inteligencii. Oni polozili ich upovanias v tebja!

No ja ocen stastliv sto u tebja teper vsjo v porjadke.

Jakub

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dude, you gotta translate that recipe and not just leave it for kremlins own purposes!