Went to my doc a few days ago to get a possible umbilical hernia checked out. Turned out to be an inflamed cyst not a hernia so I was stoked with that.
Anyhow, the doc operated to remove the cyst and while he had me, he burned (or lasered) 33 moles and spots off my head. 33 damn it!
My poor bald head looks like someone’s been stubbing out their cigarette’s on it.
He then sliced off a large mole (1/4 inch) from my leg and gave me 5 stitches. I guess I feel better that these things have been removed if they’re potentially dangerous as skin cancers but to cut things out and burn things off that currently aren’t a problem, seems a tad extreme.
[quote]duke wrote:
G’day folks,
Went to my doc a few days ago to get a possible umbilical hernia checked out. Turned out to be an inflamed cyst not a hernia so I was stoked with that.
Anyhow, the doc operated to remove the cyst and while he had me, he burned (or lasered) 33 moles and spots off my head. 33 damn it!
My poor bald head looks like someone’s been stubbing out their cigarette’s on it.
He then sliced off a large mole (1/4 inch) from my leg and gave me 5 stitches. I guess I feel better that these things have been removed if they’re potentially dangerous as skin cancers but to cut things out and burn things off that currently aren’t a problem, seems a tad extreme.
Anyone else had similar or got any thoughts?[/quote]
You would rather he waited until they became problems? I thought people were into preventive medicine?
My mom had a mole on her neck for 30 years. One week, she noticed it was a little bigger. Went to the doc, and they stated it had become cancerous, and had to remove it.
So yeah, get em removed now if your doc thinks its the right thing to do. Sucks now, but its better than having cancer later.
i’ve had a few removed, moles arent that big a deal but you do need to keep an eye on them. Questionable moles are generally asymmetrical with ill-defined borders. The most important thing is to look for moles that are changing colour, shape or size.
[quote]Professor X wrote:
duke wrote:
You would rather he waited until they became problems? I thought people were into preventive medicine?
I guess only if it is free.[/quote]
Absolutely not Prof, this is the third skin cancer doc I’ve seen in as many years but he’s the first and only one to take positive action. I was just wondering if he was over reacting compared to what others may have experienced, that’s all.
I usually respect your comments greatly, however;
Are you insinuating I wouldn’t have had this done if it wasn’t free? That’s little rude and presumptuous Prof, isn’t it?
I have a multi million dollar property portfolio and trade hundreds of thousands in shares each month - I chose this doc because he speaks English and I can understand him, after I met him at a medical centre a couple of years ago, through breaking my ribs at work. Just happens to be free, money doesn’t concern me and it’s rude of you to imply so - if that’s what you meant.
[quote]duke wrote:
Professor X wrote:
duke wrote:
You would rather he waited until they became problems? I thought people were into preventive medicine?
I guess only if it is free.
Absolutely not Prof, this is the third skin cancer doc I’ve seen in as many years but he’s the first and only one to take positive action. I was just wondering if he was over reacting compared to what others may have experienced, that’s all.
I usually respect your comments greatly, however;
Are you insinuating I wouldn’t have had this done if it wasn’t free? That’s little rude and presumptuous Prof, isn’t it?
I have a multi million dollar property portfolio and trade hundreds of thousands in shares each month - I chose this doc because he speaks English and I can understand him, after I met him at a medical centre a couple of years ago, through breaking my ribs at work. Just happens to be free, money doesn’t concern me and it’s rude of you to imply so - if that’s what you meant.[/quote]
I presume nothing except that most people will look for fault in their physician and that many patients lie about their medical histories.
Why would you look for deeper meaning than exactly what I stated? Are those moles a risk? YES. Does that mean you would definitely get cancer? NO. Could your doctor ever know one way or the other for absolute sure before this happens? NO. Is it preventive to get them removed before they become problems? YES. Would you be asking this question if you understood that no one can predict the future in biology and that treating the human body isn’t some mystical practice where answers just pop into your doc’s head allowing him to foresee things decades down the road in advance? You tell me.
Therefore, all preventive medicine would be overreactive if the disease never showed up and UNDERreactive if no treatment was ever done before it did show up.
[quote]Professor X wrote:
duke wrote:
Professor X wrote:
I presume nothing except that most people will look for fault in their physician and that many patients lie about their medical histories.
Why would you look for deeper meaning than exactly what I stated? Are those moles a risk? YES. Does that mean you would definitely get cancer? NO. Could your doctor ever know one way or the other for absolute sure before this happens? NO. Is it preventive to get them removed before they become problems? YES. Would you be asking this question if you understood that no one can predict the future in biology and that treating the human body isn’t some mystical practice where answers just pop into your doc’s head allowing him to foresee things decades down the road in advance? You tell me.
Therefore, all preventive medicine would be overreactive if the disease never showed up and UNDERreactive if no treatment was ever done before it did show up.[/quote]
Prof,
You said “I thought people were into preventive medicine?
I guess only if it is free.”
To which I asked if you were insinuating that I got the treatment purely because it was free.
Well, you evaded my question entirely, but that’s ok, you’re obviously an intelligent gentleman with excellent knowledge in a variety of areas and I respect that, still.
[quote]duke wrote:
Professor X wrote:
duke wrote:
Professor X wrote:
I presume nothing except that most people will look for fault in their physician and that many patients lie about their medical histories.
Why would you look for deeper meaning than exactly what I stated? Are those moles a risk? YES. Does that mean you would definitely get cancer? NO. Could your doctor ever know one way or the other for absolute sure before this happens? NO. Is it preventive to get them removed before they become problems? YES. Would you be asking this question if you understood that no one can predict the future in biology and that treating the human body isn’t some mystical practice where answers just pop into your doc’s head allowing him to foresee things decades down the road in advance? You tell me.
Therefore, all preventive medicine would be overreactive if the disease never showed up and UNDERreactive if no treatment was ever done before it did show up.
Prof,
You said “I thought people were into preventive medicine?
I guess only if it is free.”
To which I asked if you were insinuating that I got the treatment purely because it was free.
Well, you evaded my question entirely, but that’s ok, you’re obviously an intelligent gentleman with excellent knowledge in a variety of areas and I respect that, still.[/quote]
You just admitted that you got the treatment for free. It wasn’t some huge leap to assume that most patients avoid preventive medicine unless it is “financially rewarding” OR they are at immediate risk of getting a disease and are already scared.
It has nothing to do with how rich you are and everything to do with how most patients act.
I could see you making such a large issue…if I was wrong.
[quote]duke wrote:
Anyone else had similar or got any thoughts?[/quote]
Thoughts? Other than my sudden desire to cut the one mole I can find on my body off?
I do have a friend however that apparently does have his entire body lasered-for-moles, if that makes you feel any better. He’s only 26 I believe too, so its not something that applies only to older gents.
[quote]eclypse wrote:
duke wrote:
Anyone else had similar or got any thoughts?
Thoughts? Other than my sudden desire to cut the one mole I can find on my body off?
I do have a friend however that apparently does have his entire body lasered-for-moles, if that makes you feel any better. He’s only 26 I believe too, so its not something that applies only to older gents.[/quote]
Wow! The whole body. My doc only injected a local anaesthetic into half the ones he lasered off my scalp. He said he wanted to show me what it felt like without the anaesthetic (and he was laughing), and yep, it hurts a bit. I couldn’t imagine getting the whole bod done - ouch!
As an older gent myself, thanks for your post, I guess we should all keep a watchful eye on any changes etc.
There was a documentary on TV here recently, it showed a guy who was diagnosed with skin cancer, a young fella, and a couple of months later he was deceased. Very disturbing how quickly things can escalate.
I’m glad I was done. Perhaps my previous doctors should have also advised me to have it done, but they seemed happy to leave thigns alone.