At the Dermatologist
I have a long medical history. But for modern medicine, I would be dead several times over. Pneumonia, bleeding ulcer, knee ACL and PCL, serious butt stuff, on and on.
Most of my life I went out in the sun without sun protection. That was a bad idea, growing up at some altitude in a desert. I have done a good amount of outside work as well. The only precautions I ever took was wearing a hat, usually a ball cap.
A few years ago I started regular trips to the dermatologist to have patchy pre-cancerous areas on my face frozen. There were always new spots to be treated. Not long after the last visit I noticed my razor scraping a place on my cheek. It didn’t heal, so I called.
Early Stage Squamous Cell Cancer
This morning my Dermatologist took one look and said cancer. She started with a biopsy and saw it was deeper than she thought. She scooped out a chunk about the size of a dime. No stitches, just a band-aid and Vaseline. Squamous cell cancer.
I have always been aware of the risk. A rancher and the game warden in Fruita died from skincancers they ignored for too long. A guard at one of the water plants where I worked had a sore on his face he was ignoring. I yelled at him so much he finally went in and had the cancer cut out.
A friend at work, blonde with fair skin, grew up in Brooklyn and spent his summers at Coney Island. He travels to the Caribbean to scuba dive several times a year. He goes to his dermatologist every quarter to have more cancers cut out. He has a pretty good sized gouge out of his nose.
I thought I was probably safe because my skin is not that fair. I have hardly ever used sunscreen, but have almost always worn a hat, especially after going bald. Usually it was a ball cap. I have used a boonie hat more lately. I think my ball cap days are over. I will also start using sunblock. Once again, modern medicine is saving my life.