Winter 2008
One morning Frances noticed an abnormal growth on one of the moles on my back. Since I couldn’t see it, it was literally ‘out of sight, out of mind’. But it began a rapid increase and by the spring of the year it was a pretty good size.
May, 2008
On Sundays, I always wear a blue cotton oxford shirt and once a friend noticed that there was a spot or something on my back. It was this lesion leaking through my shirt. Frances and I discussed it sometime later and I even had some friends of mine lay hands on and pray for me. I remember Donna saying, “Is that the bandage?” and I replied, “No. That’s it!” By this time, it was the size of my thumb.
August, 2008
Frances had begun bandaging my back because of the leakage through my shirt. We also agreed that Dr. Art Morris needed to take a look at this, though we procrastinated. By September, Frances was changing the bandage at least three times a week and blood was beginning to flow. By October, she insisted we go see Art. By this time, she was changing the bandage daily.
October, 2008
Both Frances and Art did not believe the lesion presented as a melanoma; it was not consistent with cancer they had seen. He spent almost an hour from the time he put in the first anesthesia injection to the end. This lesion was deeper than either of them had imagined and it was a little more difficult to get out than Art had surmised.
