Facing Melanoma, the Most Dangerous Skin Cancer
- Teddi Mellencamp, 43, is trying hard to stay positive and strong as she’s been diagnosed with melanoma once again, something she’s is mentally preparing to talk to her three children about.
- The “Real Housewives” star was first diagnosed with stage 0 melanoma back in March 2022. Then in October of that year, after keeping up with her skin checks, she was diagnosed with stage 2. Since then she’s reportedly had a total of 15 cancer growths removed.
- Melanoma is a type of skin cancer that starts in the same cells that give your skin, hair, and eyes their color.
- You’re most likely to find melanoma on sun-exposed areas of skin, like your face, neck, arms, and legs. However, you might also find them on other places like your feet, eyes, and mouth.
- Early detection and treatment of melanoma leads to an extremely high survival rate. Treatments including targeted therapy and immunotherapy give people who are diagnosed a much better chance of living a long and healthy life than ever before.
- Parents living with cancer are encouraged to be as honest with their children as possible when explaining their condition with language that they can understand at their age.
The reality TV star and daughter of music legend John Mellencamp, who has been battling melanoma since her initial diagnosis in 2022 shared her most recent diagnosis on Instagram, in a post featuring a selfie of herself.
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Mellencamp continued, “I know I will be ok in the end – we caught this one within 90 days and earlier stages and for that I am very grateful. I am grateful to the incredible physicians, nurses, my family, horses, friends, and work but am also trying to be gentle with myself and say it’s ok to have feelings and be afraid.
“It’s ok to want to watch 55 episodes of Love Island to escape and it’s ok that I am up to 677 unread emails. Tomorrow will be better and if it’s not I will keep fighting until it is.”
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She concluded her post with some advise for her fans, telling them that she understands them if they are coping with something difficult in life, saying, “We will fight through these unknowns together.
“Sending [love] to you all and please book your skin checks.”
Fans commemorated Mellencamp for her ongoing courage through adversity, with one commenting, “Great use if your platform Teddi. It takes a-lot of guts to put it out there when I suspect you feel like crawling under the covers.
“You are a warrior girl.”
Another fan wrote, “Definitely not the news you wanted. You have been such a role model throughout this. Sending you lots of prayers and positive vibes.”
Regardless of where she’s at in her cancer journey, it’s clear Mellencamp has an immense amount of support along her battle with melanoma, whether it’s through her online community, her loving husband and children, or her family and friends.
On Father’s Day this year, Mellencamp posted a sweet video collage of her husband and kids, writing, “It’s crazy to believe we started here and have been parenting together for 15 years now.
“Watching the way you parent each of our children, the way you give love to each of them in their own special way makes my heart so full. Especially when you let Dove live out her Rocky fantasies with you.”
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“Thank you for being such an amazing dad to Bella, Slate, Cruz and Dove. Happy Father’s Day, @tedwinator! We love you, Papa,” she concluded.
Teddi Mellencamp’s Skin Cancer Journey
Teddi Mellencamp was first diagnosed with stage 0 melanoma back in March 2022. Then in October of that year, after keeping up with her skin checks, she was diagnosed with stage 2.
Since then she’s had a total of 15 cancer growths removed, according to People.
View this post on Instagram
We’re delighted Mellencamp, who is married to the CEO and Founder of Skyline Security Management Edwin Arroyave, who she shares four children with, is continuing to share her ongoing skin cancer story as she’s exuded resilience and positivity along the way.
Earlier this year Mellencamp opened up about undergoing surgery to get cancer removed from her back following an unsuccessful immunotherapy treatment.
RELATED: Continued melanoma treatment after surgery.
Just this month, she took to her Instagram story to reveal she had two other suspicious spots on her back removed and praised follow-up appointments as “just as important as getting that first check,” according to People.
She said warned her fans in the temporary post, “This is just a reminder to all of you guys. Go get your skin checked. I was talking to someone the other day and they’re like, ‘Oh yeah, I tan easily, blah blah blah. So, I’m not prone to it.’
Mellencamp added, ” Anyhoo, I know that sometimes going to get things checked or booking your appointments can create uneasiness in us but it is so worth it.”
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Understanding Melanoma
Melanoma starts in the same cells that give your skin, hair, and eyes their color. In melanoma, the cells change in a way that allows them to spread to other organs.
Changes to a mole you’ve had for a while or a new growth on your skin could be signs of melanoma.
You’re most likely to find melanoma on sun-exposed skin areas like your face, neck, arms, and legs. Surprisingly, you might also find them in other places as well, like:
- The palms of your hands or soles of your feet
- On your eyes or mouth
- Under your nails
The top way to protect yourself is by staying out of the sun, especially during peak hours, and avoiding unprotected sun exposure because ultraviolet (UV) radiation can lead to melanoma.
WATCH: Dr. Cecila Larocca on the ABCDEs of checking moles for signs of skin cancer
According to experts like Dr. Anna Pavlick, an oncologist at NYU’s Perlmutter Cancer Center, tanning beds pose ultraviolet radiation risks for skin cancer and should be avoided completely.
RELATED: How Do I Know My Skin Cancer is Gone?
Dr. Pavlick notes that people who are covered with moles stand a higher risk of developing skin cancer, especially people with dysplastic nevis syndrome, or “atypical” moles like Teddi Mellencamp.
Atypical moles are those that are unusual-looking and, when seen under a microscope, they have irregular features. Although usually benign, a high number of atypical moles do signal an increased risk for melanoma, according to the Skin Cancer Foundation which says people with 10 or more atypical moles have 12 times higher risk of developing melanoma.
Tips for Parents Struggling to Talk About Their Cancer
After a cancer diagnosis, talking about it can be challenging, especially when children are on the other end of the conversation. It’s important to prepare them for what might happen in the future, but you want to be gentle with this sensitive subject.
Teddi Mellencamp is mentally preparing for an upcoming discussion about her cancer diagnosis with her children, something which widower John Duberstein previously told SurvivorNet there is no special way to go about doing so.
Duberstein lost his wife to breast cancer, but before she passed away, the couple discussed her cancer with their children.
WATCH: Talking to kids about cancer.
“I think it’s really important to be open with the kids as much as you can, as much as you feel like they can handle,” Duberstein explained. “When Nina started to look less like a cancer patient, the kids started to make unspoken assumptions about where Nina stood.”
He went on to say as parents, they had to counter false narratives, which developed in their children’s heads about their mother’s prognosis. They had to gently remind them her cancer was not going away.
“It was hard for them to hear even though they’d already been prepared,” he further explained.
Meanwhile, breast cancer survivor Gina de Givenchy previously spoke with SurvivorNet about going through cancer treatment as the mother of a 12-year-old girl.
“I felt it was important to mask it because I really wanted her to know that I was going to be OK. I didn’t want her to see me weak and sickly,” she said. “When it comes to your kids, I think you always want to sort of protect them.”
Telling Your Kids You Have Cancer ‘When it Comes to Your Kids, You Want to Protect Them’
The pressures of parenthood can be daunting during a cancer journey, but having little ones that depend on you can also provide another source of motivation to fight for your life.
If parents find themselves nervous before having this conversation, licensed clinical psychologist Dr. Marianna Strongin said children can pick up on your emotions, so it may help to check in with yourself beforehand.
“If at this moment, you are feeling scared, it might be helpful to calm and soothe yourself first before speaking to your child,” she said.
“Having these conversations may bring up deep emotions you may have stowed away. There is nothing wrong with showing our emotions to children as long as we can remain calm and give them a sense of safety,” she said.
Helping them feel safe can mean giving them tools and strategies to manage their feelings about the situation.
“I love using my childhood self when explaining anything to children,” Strongin said. “I might say, ‘when I was your age, I remember feeling scared of many things, but one thing that always helped is taking three very deep breaths and telling my body it will be okay.’
“It is these kinds of dialogues that allow our children to feel safe and in control.”
Contributing: SurvivorNet Staff
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