I didn’t want this to get filtered to the bottom of a multi page thread. This topic is a sensitive subject for me.
For 3 years now I have been battling melanoma. When I first got diagnosed March 31, 2014, I didn’t know If I would ever see another college football season, fish another fall tide, be around to see my niece and nephew graduate. If melanoma spreads you have less than a 10% chance of a 5 year survival. If it finds an organ you have less than a year.
After the worst day of my life I went to Bass Pro and other fishing stores and I got all the sun protective clothing I could. I like the Columbia gator overt he buff for comfort. I was out on the water covered from head to toe. A guide whom I would see a lot went by me one day within ear shot and said, “Look at all these posers wearing fishing gear that they think makes them look like a better fisherman!” My blood boiled and I yelled back, “Its called melanoma asshole!” I was furious.
I am not going to go on and on about this topic. We all know the risk. The New England Journal of Health has published that sun dramatically increases skin cancers ability to spread. It’s also known now that sunscreen does not protect your skin from damaging UV, it protects you from burn but that the damage to the skin DNA still happens. The only thing that is proven to protect you is clothing with a UPV 50.
I usually post around Melanoma Monday which is the first Monday in May. This is a terrible disease. I know and when you have to see doctors constantly, do blood work and chemo or immunotherapy every two weeks it’s brutal on the mental strength.
So why do people wear buffs/ gators and fishing shirts and pants? I don’t care why as long as they are wearing them. If people are wearing them they dramatically increase their odds of not being me!
geez man- I’m sorry to hear of your troubles. Just lost one of my best friends to cancer (she was 34.) Appreciate you sharing your story though- I think I’ll change my ways of loading up on sunscreen in the morning and calling it good.
Och man! Something I’ve worried about but never done anything to change my risk factors. Very informative video, thanks for sharing.
You mentioning clothing, I recently did a full day’s worth of welding and when I took off my shirt I was red all over my belly except where my shirt pocket was. Never realized just how much uv can make it through a thin shirt.
Keep up the fight! and don’t let jacklegs being ignorant get under your skin. Do you know who the guide was? Of all people You’d think a guide would understand a man taking shelter from the Sun.
“I am constantly amazed at the stupidity of the general public.”
~my dad
Equipment:
2007 Grady White 222 Fisherman / 250 Yamaha
Simrad NSS evo2 and G4
1- 23 boy that won’t move out)
1 - 19 year old (fishing maniac)
1 - wife (The Warden)
Thanks for sharing, I hope the future prognosis is good and that you’ll have many more football seasons and fishing trips. That is why I dress the way I do anymore. Not concerned about what some hipster doofus thinks about the way I look or if someone thinks I am trying to look cool.
“Apathy is the Glove into Which Evil Slips It’s Hand”, but really, who cares?
Never have i ever given a crap in what some think about the clothes or getups I wear and after reading/seeing this post i’ll care even less;;; keep up the fight Hookem and prayers for a full recovery
Thank you for your post. I hope all is well with you Sir and pray that you will be OK. I most certainly will take a good look at what I can do to be more careful and better protect myself. Take care and God Bless Hookem.
Prayers go out for you! Good luck, keep us posted on your progress. Went to see my the dermi. yesterday and had some pre cancers burnt off. Never worried about Melanoma till I was 65 and started seeing a Dr. more often. Have been in the construction buisness all my life and worked outdoors, when I wasn’t working I was fishing. I never wore a hat or shirt. I’ve been blessed not to be dead and have learned like you to cover up my body. Have tried to no avail to share with others, younger folks don,t listen, I was the same way
Thank you for sharing your story and photos, and suggestions about protective clothing. A friend of mine was diagnosed with it several years back and is doing just fine. I hope and pray you do well, and it does not spread.
Since the scare with his melanoma, I’ve been pretty good about the clothes and sun screen. Hopefully many will heed your advise. How could anyone look at those pictures and do otherwise?
It has been just about 28 years ago that I got the same diagnosis. I remember asking the Dr. what was so different about melanoma and other skin cancers I had experienced. When he told me this one could kill me I (**() near fell over. The year following was not a lot of fun. Surgery, chemo, hair loss, being sick as a dog and trying to keep a business going. But I am still here! Floppy hats, long sleeved shirts and all. Hang in there and don’t ever stop fighting.
Thanks for all the great responses I do appreciate it. I will keep up the fight and appreciate the prayers.
Fred - I know who the guide is and he is a “native” and he works for a company I won’t name as I know the owner and he is a good guy. Every company has a few bad apples.
I hope that this post brought everyone some awareness about the risks we take with the sun on the water. Remember the rays not only rain down on us they also reflect off the water so we get double exposure.
Most of all we think of the kids that are learning to love the water like us. I always have extra buffs and sunscreen and zinc for face and lips for all my boat guests.
Just remember we never know what anyone has going on. Every time you get on a plane remember there is someone flying to a funeral. There is someone that has more going on then you do. There is someone doing what they love in order to stay happy during the fight of their life.
Last there are a lot of comments/post on this forum about guides. They are out there to earn a living and I get that choice. But they too need to understand when they try to bully people and act like they own a spot or the water that some people are there for therapy. All of us go through a stressful events like divorce, lost a loved one, job loss or in my case H2O therapy is where cancer leaves my mind and I get relief. So do I leave a spot for a guide sometimes yes (If I know them or I invite them to fish close to me with no issue) but if they act entitled then I might say sorry. My point is you never know what people are going through so treat everyone with kindness and respect until they show they don’t deserve that kindness and respect.
I just got back from a funeral that had nothing to do with cancer, other than they pointed out she beat a rare form of cancer 40 years ago! I didnt even know we could treat like that 40 years ago. Where theres a will theres a way man! We will add you into our prayer bucket.
Wait till everyone sees my Bocatech push button buff…its a wearable billboard far more annoying than a shark skin print. I was never going to wear it outside of work, now I cant wait for this summer!!
“If you had to tell someone how good you are, then you probably aren’t that good”
