Recently, a lump of some kind sprang up on my cheek beside my nose on the right. I had it biopsied but the biopsy was uninformative. It was however growing so was probably a cancer of some sort and hence needed to be removed.
I put one of the best plastic surgeons in Brisbane -- someone I know well from past procedures -- onto the job and he successfully removed it yesterday -- charging $4,000 for the job. It was a very difficult job so it was worth that to me.
The tumor went down to the bone and it abutted a facial muscle. In less capable hands I could have been left with a droopy face. It is already a bit droopy due to my having lost a left facial nerve in another cancer operation some years ago. The muscle appears to have been preserved this time however
It was a Moh's procedure so we know that the tumor was all gone before I was stitched up. I didn't have a lot of pain when the local wore off but the site is rather uncomfortable. There was some swelling around the site but I am taking Roxithromycin for it and the swelling does appear to be on the way down. Roxithromycin is a "safer" form of Erythromycin, which has worked well for me in the past. I note that Roxithromycin is not yet approved for use in the USA but is approved in a number of European countries
The biopsy of the specimen yielded a diagnosis of a BCC but the cells were obviously unusual so my surgeon is consulting and oncologist colleague to understand a bit about it. He has not ruled out follow-up radiology.
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