Final Blog

Ever since my cousin passed away in 1998, I have been furthering my education about melanoma. However, I have only looked up how the cancer comes about and progresses; never have I researched the methods in how to either prolong a person's life or cure the patient altogether. I was completely shocked when I came across the number of ways to fight melanoma. 

Of all the methods that I researched, I believe the one that will  make the most impact will be the MelaFind.  Every week when I was looking up another technology, I would find a new article about the MelaFind. I have even asked my parents if I would be allowed to try it out if I can find a practice in Arizona that uses the technology. What impresses me most about this lazer-gun looking tool is that it is able to take a picture of a suspicious mole for a dermatologist to determine whether or not surgery needs to be performed - no biopsy is needed. For me, the biopsy is just as painful as the surgery; I even passed out during one of my biopsies. What makes a biopsy worse is that you are left with a scar, regardless if you needed the second surgery or not. The MelaFind takes out the need for a biopsy, and you know if you need surgery that day rather than waiting 7-10 days for the biopsy results. Having to wait is one of the worst parts of receiving news. The only downside is that the MelaFind is not yet covered by insurance, so I would have to pay $100 out-of-pocket to use the tool. 

To me, the least beneficial method is Mole Mapping. With this method, a person's moles are mapped out to track any changes, itchiness, tenderness or concern for a particular mole. The pictures are sent to other dermatologists for analysis and stored in a database for future comparisons. However, a biopsy would still need to be performed if something looked suspicious to a doctor. Additionally, mole mapping is incredibly expensive. The cheapest consultation, which only covers 3 moles and 15 minutes with a doctor, is $130. Consultations can cost as much as $300 for a first time visit and up to $285 for follow up patients. This would be an ongoing fee for people who have a high mole count. I do not believe that this service is worth the cost. Other technologies are cheaper and just as, if not more, effective.

The technology that surprised me the most was the mobile application. People always joke about there being an app for everything; this even holds true for "detecting" melanoma. What is most frustrating to me is that people actually believe that this is an acceptable way to check themselves for cancer. Users send in pictures of moles via their phones and receive a response from a dermatologist. However, the accuracy of the results vary greatly. The best apps diagnose cancerous moles with a 98.1% accuracy, and the worst apps detect melanoma with 6.8% accuracy. Taking a picture and sending it in is a free and convenient service, but the only way to know for sure if a person has melanoma is to physically see a doctor.

I only see melanoma technology improving for the future, whether it be in 1, 5 or 10 years. With all the new advances being made in medicine, I would not be surprised if another technology would spring up in a few years or if there would be an improvement on the current ones that I researched. Previously, melanoma has only been treated by means of chemotherapy. I have found and researched a variety of different methods that can help a person either live longer than expected or be completely cured from melanoma. I believe that as time goes on, doctors will find a way to decrease the cost of these treatments while working on new ones as well.  I am hopeful for what the future will bring when it comes to curing patients with melanoma.  

This blog has opened my eyes to a different side of melanoma. I can now not only inform people about the dangers of the cancer, but also tell them that there are ways to cure it should a person find out he or she has the disease. I will continue to raise awareness about melanoma. 

Updates on my scars:

On my leg

On my back