Two years and counting: Mom, 40, continues fight with Stage IV melanoma

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Approximately 7,650 people in the U.S. are expected to die from melanoma this year.

As I quickly approach two-years post diagnosis of stage 4 melanoma, I am grateful to be alive.

Now 40, these last two years have simultaneously flown by and stood still. I’ve held on for dear life on the roller coaster that is cancer while desperately wanting off.

With May being skin cancer and melanoma awareness month, it is an opportune time to share a summer sun safety reminder and warning.

After years of not protecting my skin from the Florida sun’s harmful UV rays on the beaches of Brevard County, and exposing myself to the risks of tanning bed use, I was diagnosed with stage 4 melanoma in June of 2020.

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At that time, I was riddled with disease — malignant melanoma tumors in both lungs and various other organs, in the orbits of both eyes, and throughout the subcutaneous tissue of my body.

Immunotherapy treatment initially worked really well, but left me permanently insulin dependent, hospitalized for aseptic meningitis and caused acute liver toxicity.

Due to the severity of the side effects I experienced and cancer progression, my Moffitt Cancer Center care team and I decided it was time to explore other treatment options.

Cancer progression was initially isolated to a single lung tumor, so SBRT (high dose radiation) was the decided treatment. Over the next few months, the lung tumor began shrinking, but another appeared. So began the fun game of whack-a-mole.

A tumor on my right adrenal gland has been resistant to radiation and two more tumors have appeared since immunotherapy treatment stopped.

Clinical trials were then of treatment consideration, but with strict requirements and limited spots available, I was unable to quickly get enrolled.

This brings us to today.

I am back on immunotherapy but with a sister drug this time — Keytruda.

So far, things are off to a better start because I am not having allergic reactions like I previously did during the infusions. That alone has been such a blessing because its absence has decreased the anxiety surrounding an already difficult journey.

Updated scans are scheduled for June to determine if immunotherapy is once again working to help my body find and kill cancer.

As I find myself in the figurative waiting room, I cannot help but reflect on what got me here — lack of knowledge and underestimating how dangerous skin cancer is.

As a result, I’ve become a zealous advocate for melanoma awareness and continue to share my story and what I’ve learned — the hard way.

I now try to avoid the sun as much as possible between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. If going outdoors, I wear a non-expired, broad spectrum 30+ sunblock and reapply every 2 hours (don’t forget your lips, ears and scalp) and UV protectant sunglasses.

If I’m feeling lazy, I’ll wear UPF clothing and hats instead. I do not use tanning beds. I check my skin regularly for any new or changing moles, sores or skin patches.

I also see a dermatologist every 2 months for a skin check, but most can do so annually. Lastly, I appreciate the gift of life and making the most of it.

On my blog, Love & Sunblock, you can find additional resources such as: updates, featured articles, sun safety tools and encouragement. My hope is that by sharing, others will begin to incorporate daily, sun safety habits and that at a minimum, a single life is saved.

Skin cancer does not discriminate, but it is oftentimes preventable.

This summer consider making educated decisions that promote life instead of possibly becoming a skin cancer statistic.

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Amanda Hunt fights for life two years after stage 4 melanoma diagnosis