Melanoma excision

I posted once before and have since had my excisional biopsy on a mole that turned out to be melanoma.  I am terrified even though doctor is hopeful.  Doc said they got it all out.  Initial report was .49 mm and thin and superficial.  What are the chances it has grown to 3 or 4 mm once they dug deeper in the skin.  What are the chances something this small has already spread?  Lymph node check by hand was fine.  Hope you can help.  Thank you.

[Alan Rockoff, MD]

The prognosis for a melanoma that small is excellent.  Your doctor is right to be hopeful.  "Excision" means cutting the whole thing out, so if that showed that the melanoma was only half a millimeter deep, you already know that it isn't 3-4 millimeters deeper.  Besides, I'm sure they plan to take a wider excision as a precaution, and the pathologist will analyze that too to be sure that the tissue shows no melanoma left behind.  The chances of spread are very small.  You'll need regular follow-up, of course.  Discuss your understandable anxiety with your dermatologist when you go.

Take care.

Dr. Rockoff