Yesterday my husband and I had the scare of our lives. He went to the dr. last week to have a mole removed and they found a few other spots that were concerning. They called yesterday morning to say the one in his leg is melanoma. We went in yesterday afternoon and they cut a HUGE area out of his leg. We are extremely lucky because it is the earliest stage that you can catch melanoma. It will not require any chemo or other treatment. He will be checked every 3 months though. If you don't know, melanoma is extremely aggressive and deadly if it goes undetected. In fact, according to the literature she gave us yesterday, if confined to the one part in the skin and able to be cut out, the 5 year survival rate is 98%; however, if it has spread to lymph nodes it is 60%; if it has spread to organs, it is 15%. My husband and I literally feel like he dodged a bullet. We didn't even know the spot was there. We will be very careful from now on. That being said, I am posting this to warn you all to wear sunscreen, hats, etc. in all outdoor sporting events year round. The doctor said that she sees so many athletes with cancer because they don't think about sunscreen when they aren't swimming. She had a runner who died from a case of melanoma that originated in the part line of her hair. We all spend lots of hours outdoors. It is so important to protect your skin!!!!! I learned a lesson yesterday that I will not forget.