It has been some time since I last wrote a post here, so I thought I would start the New Year with an update. I’m really sorry for such a lengthy hiatus, but it is for a good reason I promise. Life is boring. And not in a miserable sort of way, in a lack of news sort of way. I am totally and utterly aware of how quickly things can change, but I‘m really enjoying the fact that not much has been happening for me health-wise since my liver resection back in February 2021.

I have made a good recovery and am back to doing everything I used to – even drinking the odd glass of wine or 2, albeit with a new-found respect for my heroic liver. The big news, which I find myself scared to say out loud sometimes, is that I have had 3 totally clear scans since May last year. For officially one year, I have had NED (no evidence of disease). Technically speaking, I’ve had NED since my lung operation in November 2020, I just didn’t know it for a little while. Having not 1, not 2, but 3 clear scans has given me permission to celebrate. I’m really scared to jinx it, but honestly what does that even mean?! Me writing it down here is not going to have an actual effect on the outcome of my next scan.

Seriously though, I think the reason I am so nervous to celebrate is for a valid reason. I have seen far too many times over the past couple of years how quickly things can change in stage 4 melanoma. People, like me, too often go from clear scans to not clear scans seemingly overnight. I’m part of a support group on Facebook, which has been both helpful and heart-breaking in equal measures. I’ve seen many people from all over the world die from melanoma since I’ve been a member, and even though I don’t know a lot of them personally it doesn’t make it any less real. It’s a constant reminder that you’re walking a tightrope.

So for now, I’m spending some time away from Facebook and focusing on what’s happening today. And the reality is that I feel semi-normal. I’m back in work full time, and you really wouldn’t know from looking at me that I’m still on treatment. I continue with Nivolumab every 4 weeks for the time being, and I’m starting to see those new drugs I have talked about in the past becoming a real possibility for the future of melanoma care. A whole load of freaky coincidences, a totally expert medical team, the wonder drugs that are Ipi/Nivo, and some damn good luck (who remembers the benign liver lesions), has got me to this point. Honestly, if I think about it too much my head really hurts. Next scan in 2 months…