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Lee's personal story


Lee Smith
Stitches from excision
I first noticed a small growth on my forearm early in 2011. I didn't give it much thought at the time. The small growth had the appearance of no more than a small insect bite, but it continued to grow slowly over the next year and wouldn't go away.

I finally decided to go to my family physician, and he attempted to freeze the spot, which had become the size of a small pea, and had the appearance of a pearl. After a week or so the top of the spot did fall off but it was now flat and noticeably hard in the area. Almost immediately it began to grow back, and I knew the treatment had failed.

y family physician then sent me to a surgeon.and he advised me it should be removed, but he didn't think it was anything to be very concerned over. I was very surprised to see the thing after it was removed, it was probably ten times larger than the small bump on the surface of the skin, and looked like a large jelly bean.

After two weeks I returned to get the stitches out and this was when I learned it was skin cancer, at which time the doctor excised more tissue around the original cut and I once again was stitched up.

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