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Bea Buckley, 40, was diagnosed with stage 3b acral melanoma, a rare type of skin cancer, in 2022. After three surgeries and 12 months of targeted therapy, she is now disease-free and feels hopeful about the future.
I first noticed a mark on my right foot in 2020 when I was pregnant with my twin boys, Alfred and Thomas. I assumed it was a verruca. But as I had never had one before, and was pregnant, I decided to consult a pharmacist on the safest way to treat it.
The pharmacist told me they didn’t think it was a verruca, and as it didn’t hurt, I should just leave it and it would probably go away. I felt reassured, got on with life and forgot about it. For the next few months, my focus was on my pregnancy and avoiding Covid. I didn’t give my foot much thought.
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The boys were born in March 2021. With newborn twins, life was a whirlwind. But when they were about a year old, I started to get my life back. I wanted to get fit and take up running again. By then, the mark on my foot had changed. It was darker and had doubled in size. When I ran, it became irritated and bled through my socks. I assumed my old running shoes were the issue and bought myself a new pair. But the problem persisted.
Then one day, I went to have a pedicure. It was my first treat since having my babies, but when it came to getting my feet out, I felt embarrassed. The mark on my foot seemed ugly to me. I didn’t want the beautician to think I was expecting her to touch a verruca, so reassured her that I’d been told that it wasn’t. She immediately answered, “Oh no, that’s definitely not a verruca!” Her reaction caught me off guard – her conviction and certainty that it wasn’t a harmless verruca suddenly made me worry. Up until then, I had convinced myself that because the pharmacist had said it was fine, it was probably nothing. I had ignored my husband’s repeated pleas to get it checked. For some reason though, this was a penny-drop moment, and I made an appointment with my GP.
I sent photos of my foot to the doctor and was called in to see a GP who had a special interest in dermatology. He was unsure about what he could see and asked another doctor for a second opinion. They both said they thought the likelihood was that it was a verruca that had become infected, but because of my fair skin type (being a redhead, I am fair and have always burned easily despite wearing high factor suncream) they referred me to a dermatologist. I left the surgery feeling reassured that it was probably nothing.
‘Hearing that you have cancer is a total shock’
Within two weeks, I was seen by a consultant who, looking at my foot through a dermatoscope, was unsure what it was. He suggested a biopsy but urged me not to worry in the meantime.
A few weeks later, I had a shave biopsy and then endured an agonising wait for the results to come back from the lab. It was around five weeks before I heard anything and in that time, I started to get anxious. I had Googled my symptoms and realised that I ticked every box for the signs of acral melanoma.
The blessing of having small children is that they act as a distraction. I tried to focus on them and not think about my foot. But I was concerned enough to book an appointment with my GP to discuss my worries. When I arrived at the surgery, the results of the biopsy had just been sent to him, and he could see them on his computer. My husband was at home looking after the children, so I was alone when the doctor broke the news: I had malignant melanoma.
‘I remember asking the consultant if I was going to survive’
Hearing that you have cancer is a total shock. It was a horrible moment. At that point, I had no other details, there was no staging diagnosis and no treatment plan for me. I remember fearing that my boys would grow up without their mother. I had read so much about the importance of early detection and felt utterly stupid that I had allowed this mark to remain on my foot for two years. I felt so guilty that I had ignored the warning signs.
I am not good at being in limbo and waiting for my next appointment was hard. I tried not to go into a negative thought pattern, but I wanted and needed a plan of action. I still wanted to be the fun and happy mum that I had been, so it was important for me to try to stay positive and not allow my cancer diagnosis to take over my life.
The next urgent step was to have the whole thing removed. In total, I had three procedures: the shave biopsy, followed by the removal of the rest of the melanoma a few weeks later, and then a wide local excision and further biopsy after that. By December 2022, I had my full diagnosis: stage 3b acral melanoma. The disease had spread to my lymph nodes but was not ulcerated.
It was a huge shock for me to find out that it had spread. Hearing those words was a real moment of distress. I remember asking the consultant if I was going to survive and he just said that he didn’t know. The doctors had been really positive early on – I initially thought it would all be over by Christmas with nothing more to worry about. Now, I had learned that it had spread and my husband and I found ourselves in tears.
I was rushed for urgent MRI and CT scans to check whether there had been any spread to other organs – and thankfully, we found out that this was not the case. Early in the new year, I started targeted therapy. A genetic test had revealed that I was BRAF-positive, which meant targeted therapy was likely to work best for me. I had to take two tablets twice a day for 12 months. It wasn’t a picnic and at times, I was quite unwell. But 18 months on from finishing my treatment, I’m here. I don’t have any residual side effects, I am well and I am cancer-free.
‘I have directly benefitted from cancer research’
I know that I have not been a very easy patient. I asked a lot of questions. I needed to understand everything that was happening to me and my treatment options. I made it my responsibility to do my research and to advocate for myself. I think that is really important.
I am now under regular surveillance with a full body skin check every three months, as well as regular CT and MRI scans. I find this extremely reassuring. Of course, if something was picked up, I would be anxious. Recently, I noticed something on my foot and felt instantly scared, but fortunately it was just pigmentation.
Of course, I have experienced moments of panic, but I am definitely in a better place with everything now. The statistics show that 90 per cent of people with my type of surgery and treatment will have no further problems. For some time, I could only focus on the 10 per cent – and this caused me a lot of stress and worry. But now I am able to concentrate on the 90 per cent figure and feel much more hopeful and optimistic.
I have had my wobbles and have been lucky enough to have some therapy, which has really helped with my mindset. I have realised that I cannot go through life constantly worrying and anxious. I have to think about what sort of wife, mother and friend I want to be – and that is someone fun, happy and positive.
‘I feel so grateful to research for the drugs that helped me’
I feel so passionately about cancer research because I feel like I’m one of the patients who has directly benefited from it. Years ago, melanoma patients were only treated with surgery. Huge clusters of lymph nodes would be removed, and that would carry risks of life-changing side effects. Early on in my journey, I was told about the drugs that could be available to me, and this gave me hope and reassurance.
Cancer survival rates have improved over the last 50 years, but the disease is still so devastating to many. We need more options all the time to ensure that more people survive it. Research and medical care has come so far, but it is still not able to cure everyone. It is wonderful to know that there are brilliant people out there constantly looking for new treatments. For me, I feel so grateful to research for having discovered the drugs that helped me.
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