Squeamish over Squamous

squamous cell carcinoma

My biopsy report came back Wednesday, and as expected the spot on my arm was positive for cancer. This time it is another squamous cell. Of my 19 skin cancer diagnoses, 4 have been squamous cell and the rest have been basal cell.

Dr. Seminara offered me two choices for taking care of this spot. The first is to do an ED&C like she did to the two basal cells on my neck in April of last year. That was no fun since the cells are just scraped off and no stitches are given. They took quite a while to heal, and as I am allergic to the adhesive in bandages that made dealing with open wounds problematic. The second choice is to do a deep burn on the spot with liquid nitrogen followed by a topical skin cancer cream. The success rate is in the 96th percentile with the first option and in the 84th percentile with the second. 

On one other occasion I was prescribed a topical cancer cream to use on my forehead. Let alone making my forehead swell so much I could barely see, it burned a lot and made me sicker than a dog. I thought I had the flu until my husband pointed out that I was sick on each day I used the cream, but started feeling better on the off days of usage. Based on that experience, I am opting to go with the ED&C again. I am waiting on the dermatology scheduling department to call me and set the appointment.

In the meantime, I'm just going to enjoy watching the sun from the shade of my back porch.

Mountain Island Lake