Grandpa's face surgery

Today grandpa Allen had some cancer spots removed from his face. They only did two today and will do others later. One had clean edges the first time on that which was removed. The second spot took four tries before the doctor was satisfied. There were even more spots in the same area that are pre-cancerous spots or that are most likely cancer. The type of cancer he had removed is called Squamus cancer. It is more agressive and more dangerous than basil cells. He has one basil cell spot just above his lip on the right side. That will be removed when we return from Denver. Because he has so many spots they are going to do some chemo treatment on his skin with some special cream. I didn't even know they could do that. Apparently for his particular type it has proven to be quite effective. They didn't have to do a skin graft on either site. The doctor said she was able to just close up the holes with stitches, which, on the side of his face, kind of gave him a bit of a face lift. We laughed at that. He is keeping it iced off and on today, and will continue that tomorrow. When we get back from Denver the doctor will be checking for other possible sites that need attention. I am so glad I made him go to see the dermatologist. In our generation, as we were growing up there was no such thing as sunscreen. Now we have some great lotions and creams that can protect us from the sun. So, my advice to everyone is that we use the sunscreens whenever we will be outside for extended periods of time, especially between 10:00 am and 4:00 pm, as that is when the sun's rays are the strongest and the most likely to cause damage.