1/4/2024 0 Comments Tiny planet gloucester![]() “If you have a melanoma which is caught early, the chance of you making a full recovery after treatment is extremely good. In the South West skin cancer rates are high, because of the increasing exposure UV radiation.” More than 500 people have been treated for melanoma since 2019 in Gloucestershire and around 150 patients are treated for mouth cancer in Gloucestershire each year.įellow Consultant Maxillofacial Surgeon Simon Whitley said: “Head and neck cancers are relatively rare compared to skin cancers which are incredibly common and rates of both are increasing in the UK. “This gamma scan helps us to locate the node and remove it for tests so a patient who needs it can begin the immunotherapy as soon as possible.”ĭozens of patients a year undergo this procedure and without this gamma scan to pinpoint the nodes, doctors would have to remove a large area around them to ensure they have removed the right cells. One of the most common places for cancer to spread first is to the lymph nodes which are essentially small bodily filters located in areas such as the neck, armpit and groin.Ĭonsultant Maxillofacial Surgeon at Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Daryl Godden, said: “A standard scan such as a CT or MRI may show there is no evidence of cancer, but it doesn’t mean to say that there aren’t microscopic amounts of disease in the lymph node which are too small be detected. I would urge anyone if you see something on your tongue or in your mouth, then ask somebody, don’t ignore it.” I never really thought it would be cancer. “I just had these two marks on my tongue that didn’t change shape or anything and I had no other symptoms. “If it means that more patients can be treated quicker, then this can only be a good thing,” ![]() ![]() He said he would urge people to support the appeal to help more patients in the future. There are just two little scars, one on my chest which is fading and one on my neck which you wouldn’t know was there.” “I was only in hospital for one night with the gamma scan in the morning and the surgery in the afternoon and I was home the next day. Ian said: “When I was diagnosed it was a very surreal and scary time but everyone was so kind and professional, and it was dealt with so quickly. This treatment helps mouth cancer patients like Ian, as well as those with a certain type of skin cancer, called melanoma, which is the fifth most common form of cancer in the UK.Ĭheltenham and Gloucester Hospitals Charity launched an appeal to raise £600,000 for a new state-of-the art version of the gamma imaging equipment to help more patients receive the treatment they need. Without this, doctors said patients would have to undergo a much more invasive operation. The scan is provided by a CT Gamma Scanner which is used alongside a CT scan to pinpoint the exact location of lymph nodes to be removed for analysis.
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