POZ Community Forums
Main Forums => Pre-HAART Long-Term Survivors => Topic started by: J.R.E. on January 09, 2013, 08:29:27 am
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Wish me luck boys and girls. Ed and I will be heading out the door, in about a half hour to go to St.Pete, to get this skin cancer removed from my nose.
I don't believe they are doing MOHS surgery, But I will find out more during the procedure.
http://www.skincancer.org/skin-cancer-information/mohs-surgery?gclid=COzPi8iu27QCFQf0nAodnTYAiw
Pre surgery and post surgery pics to follow later today.
I also have to have my ADAP reauthorized today, so I will see the Ryan White coordinator, first at 10:00. Surgery is scheduled for 11:30.
And I am beat. I've been up since 6:00 yesterday afternoon and worked all night, plus, I've developed a sore throat, and a runny nose. hopefully the nose won't run, while the doctors working on it. ::)
Later---Ray
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I'm wishing you the best of luck Ray ... and a speedy recovery .
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Good luck, Ray.
I hope all comes off OK.
HUGS,
Mark
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good luck Ray..need to keep that positive attitude you will still be handsome and hot after surgery
Nick
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Thanks everyone,!...
Overall everything went well. The surgery lasted about 45 minutes,from the time I was numbed, to when the final bandage was placed on.
It may be hard to tell from these photos, but I have bit of swelling going on. It looks as though there are 5 external sutures, and there are internal ones as well. Everything feels "tight"
The doctor removed a portion about the size of a shirt button. I/ve noticed that one of my nostrils seems to be higher than the other one.
I will get a call from the doctor in about a week, hopefully he will tell me he got it all. He also took care of another area behind my left ear, by freezing it.
Here some pics :
Pre op pics taken this morning, you may be able to notice then dent in the nose from the Biospsy taken on November 29th
(http://i1047.photobucket.com/albums/b473/exrrje/Surgery006_zpse7db1738.jpg)
ANOTHER PRE OP PIC TAKEN THIS MORNING:
(http://i1047.photobucket.com/albums/b473/exrrje/Surgery002_zps8c258bdc.jpg)
AND YET ANOTHER PRE OP PIC:
(http://i1047.photobucket.com/albums/b473/exrrje/Surgery001_zps332ce269.jpg)
POST OP: ALOT OF SWELLING:
(http://i1047.photobucket.com/albums/b473/exrrje/Surgery008_zpse92bfddd.jpg)
PIC OF SUTURES: Notice the lifted nostril ! ::)
(http://i1047.photobucket.com/albums/b473/exrrje/Surgery011_zps94526049.jpg)
Except for the tightness, I feel pretty good, but I am dealing with a cold and a continually runny nose ! :P
THIS IS THE WOUND CARE INSTRUCTIONS:
(http://i1047.photobucket.com/albums/b473/exrrje/instructionsforwoundcare001_zps3a6f6614.jpg)
I said to Ed, I hope the left nostril drops back into place. I feel like porky pig. Looks like I have a broken nose :D
WORDS OF ADVICE: PUT THAT SUNSCREEN ON !! DON'T PLAY AROUND WITH ANY KIND OF SKIN CANCER !
On another note, I received my blood test from December 24th. Tcells @ 580, (Best yet) viral load undetectable, percentage still stagnating @ 16% All other labs within range.
Time to go to bed, I've been up almost 21 hours. ::)
All is well----Ray
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Hey Ray you handsome devil!
Glad to hear everything went ok.
I had my first "removal" last summer.
It was painless but still a much bigger deal (more cut out) than I was expecting.
Hope your nostrils even up. :)
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Hope your nostrils even up. :)
;D Thanks LOL ---- I may have to grow my mustache back to take away from the uneven nostrils. :P Maybe if I wear a clothespin for a week it will even out. ::)
The nose is feeling better, Still very numb, and swollen, It's this damn cold now, which is driving me crazy. Like I have an open tap under my nose. ;D One day at a time !!
Ray
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good progress Ray hope it all clears soon...
Nick
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OK, :D The black eye started last night ( Day 2). The doctor told me I may get a black eye.
Looks as though I just stepped out of the boxing ring ! :P
Too much.... :)
(http://i1047.photobucket.com/albums/b473/exrrje/swelling002_zpsd6b754fd.jpg)
(http://i1047.photobucket.com/albums/b473/exrrje/swelling001_zps7d56ecab.jpg)
Ray 8) (Black and blue and swollen,but feeling good )
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;D I had to think of a song to go with the pics, so I decided on this one: lol
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39YUXIKrOFk
Ray 8)
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Thank the gods/goddesses for Walgreens. I bought some exfoliation products, some make up and some facial creams and I look like my old self again :
;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
you can hardly notice the swelling ::) ::)
(http://i1047.photobucket.com/albums/b473/exrrje/bP_zps5e86cd4a.jpg)
Ray
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Good Ray Good ... and now if you can keep Angelina off your face you can beat this thing .
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Ray, I am so sorry I didn't notice this thread earlier. I am glad the recovery is coming along nicely.
Wishing you a speedy recovery.
HUGS
Wolfie
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Good news to report,... The surgeon called today to inform me that all the basal cell has been removed, and my nose is basal cell free.
Hopefully, I can begin a streak of not having any skin issues for a while. Everything is healing quite well, and fast.
My next scheduled appt. with the dermatologist was on 5/29/13, but he said today that he will probably move that date up some.
Ray
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great news Ray!
:)
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Wow Ray, you have really been through a lot lately. I'm glad you got this taken care of, and hopefully you won't have any more skin issues ( at least for a long long time!).
A mustache sounds like a good idea to me....even with the bruises and bandages, you still look remarkably good to me.
HUGS, Alan
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And speaking about basal cell and squamous cell, I just received this in my email :
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/255595.php
HIV Patients At Two-Fold Higher Risk For Non-Melanoma Skin Cancers
Main Category: HIV / AIDS
Also Included In: Melanoma / Skin Cancer
Article Date: 31 Jan 2013 - 1:00 PST
HIV-positive patients have a higher incidence of non-melanoma skin cancers, according to a Kaiser Permanente study that appears in the current online issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Specifically, basal cell and squamous cell carcinomas occur more than twice as often among HIV-positive individuals compared to those who are HIV-negative.
The study cohort of 6,560 HIV-positive and almost 37,000 HIV-negative subjects was drawn from members of Kaiser Permanente Northern California from 1996 to 2008.
Overall, HIV-positive subjects had a 2.1-fold higher risk for basal cell carcinomas and a 2.6-fold higher risk for squamous cell carcinomas, compared to HIV-negative subjects. In addition, squamous cell carcinomas were associated with lower CD4 counts, a measure of immunodeficiency. Prior antiretroviral therapy was not found to be associated with the incidence of either squamous cell carcinomas or basal cell carcinomas.
"These findings represent unique data on non-melanoma skin cancers in HIV patients. Most cancer registries, on which previous studies relied, do not record these types of cancers," said lead author Michael J. Silverberg, PhD, MPH, of the Kaiser Permanente Division of Research.
"This should be of interest to several fields, including HIV, dermatology and cancer. Given the increasing longevity for HIV-positive individuals, the burden of many age-related, non-AIDS-defining cancers, including NMSCs, will only continue to increase. Based on our studies, non-melanoma skin cancers are by far the most common cancer this population experiences."
Non-melanoma skin cancers are the most common cancers in the United States, with more than 3.5 million new cases diagnosed each year. Although most non-melanoma skin cancers are easily cured, many become locally invasive and destructive.
"In the general population, we see one case of squamous cell carcinoma for every four cases of basal cell carcinoma," said senior author Maryam M. Asgari, MD, MPH, a Kaiser Permanente dermatologist and investigator at the Division of Research. "It was notable in this study that for HIV-positive subjects with high CD4 counts, this ratio was similar to HIV-negative subjects. But for HIV-positive subjects with low CD4 counts, there was one case of squamous cell carcinoma for every two cases of basal cell carcinoma."
The increased incidence rate of non-melanoma skin cancers in HIV-positive subjects is consistent with the growing evidence about this population's increased risk for a broad range of cancers, according to the study authors. They cited a large meta-analysis in which both HIV/AIDS and organ-transplant populations exhibited increased incidence for many types of cancer. The increased cancer risk is likely due to immunodeficiency, the main risk factor these populations have in common. This conclusion was reinforced by a recent large, population-based study of U.S. transplant recipients.
Until now, however, limited data existed about the association between HIV/AIDS and the risk of non-melanoma skin cancer, specifically with regard to the risks for basal cell carcinomas and squamous cell carcinomas. Several studies that have used linked data from HIV/AIDS and cancer registries have reported standardized incidence ratios for other non-epithelial skin cancers that range from 1.8 to 6.5, whereas other studies have indicated no statistically significant associations with HIV infection. However, most cancer registries exclude basal cell carcinomas and squamous cell carcinomas, which are not reportable malignancies.
While non-melanoma skin cancers are harder to detect, Kaiser Permanente's comprehensive and integrated approach to care allows clinicians to identify these cancers sooner and get members the care they need.
"The clinical implications for these findings include increased vigilance in skin-cancer screening for HIV-positive individuals, especially for squamous cell carcinomas and particularly for those who are not on antiretroviral therapy or who were diagnosed late and have more advanced HIV/AIDS," said Dr. Asgari. "HIV-positive individuals should also be advised to reduce behaviors that may further increase non-melanoma skin cancer incidence, such as excessive sun exposure. In addition, given the observed association of immunodeficiency and squamous cell carcinomas, earlier initiation of antiretroviral therapy to maintain higher CD4 counts may also help reduce the burden of this cancer."
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Battle I havn't had to deal with yet but good for you for dealing with it and
the walgreens cosmetics look just fabu! Good job :)
Good Ray Good ... and now if you can keep Angelina off your face you can beat this thing .
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Battle I havn't had to deal with yet but good for you for dealing with it and
the walgreens cosmetics look just fabu! Good job :)
Thanks ! :) it's been 29 days since I had this done, and I still have one annoying scab on the nose, that I may have to pull off ! :P I think most of the sutures have dissolved, there may be one or two left under the scab.
I have to go Saturday morning, to get some new frames and glasses.Hate to have to try all the frames on, with the scab, at just about where the glasses rest.
I may have to throw a spot bandage on it, so people won't go:
EEEWWWWWWW !! But I really need to get these glasses fitted on Saturday
Ray