Skip to main content

Posts

Malignant Melanoma: More that Just a Mole

Malignant Melanoma. It’s just a mole. Just a mole, they said, nodding their heads. Photo by Keith Cartmell This one was different. It didn’t fit the ABCDE criteria for suspicious moles. My body is covered in hundreds or thousands of moles thanks to my Irish genetics, fair skin that burns before it tans, green eyes and blonde hair.   This mole wasn’t dark and flat like in the ABCDE posters.  It was dark pink (amelanotic) and raised (nodular). Atypical. Source: NCI Visuals Online. Skin Cancer Foundation. www.cancer.gov. The ABCDEs of melanoma skin cancer are: Asymmetry.  One half doesn't match the appearance of the other half. Border irregularity.  The edges are ragged, notched, or blurred. Colour.  The colour (pigmentation) is not uniform. Shades of tan, brown, and black are present. Dashes of red, white, and blue add to a mottled appearance. Diameter.  The size of the mole is greater than 6 mm (1/4 inch), about the size of a pencil eraser. Any growth of a mole should be evaluated.

On being Ace

This article was written for Ace Week for Alberta Aces and Aros who are featuring stories about our experience living as an ace-spec in an allo world from our community members. I wasn't able to stick to the 200 word limit so I put it all together here so it can be linked to and shared. I’m Michelle (she/they), a bilingual (English and French), ÂûDHD, melanin-deficient woman queer (greysexual panromantic sapphic) cis woman. I was born in Calgary and also lived in Québec where I completed my B.Ed. in French and a diploma in horticulture. My coming out story is on my blog and in the Queer in Alberta Storyhive interview. How did I get here? It took me half a century to be exposed words and meaning that gave me the 'aha!' moment and let me know I'm not alone and I'm not broken. This is why I'm writing this. This is why education is so important. Without language to describe ourselves and find others like us, we may spend our whole lives believing we are the on