New drama - the great toe mystery

At my last appointment with achilles surgeon Dr Reach, I remembered to ask him about a strange brown/black mark on my right big toenail that I had noticed sometime after the surgery and appeared to be growing with the nail.  I thought it had been caused by pressure on the big toe during surgery.

Dr Reach looked aghast - "Oh no, we never touch the toes.  This could be a sub unguis melanoma. You should see a dermatologist."  No time to do this - we were leaving for Christmas in California with Mary, Mark, Alexis and Ethan in a couple of days.

Mark looked at my toenail, "Hmm, I don't think it is anything like that. It's just dried blood from a trauma to the toe.  And of course something could have happened related to the surgery. I suggest you see a podiatrist just to be sure."

So, once in Sarasota, I went to see Dr Howard, who also thought there was less than a 5% chance  the mark on my right "great toe" nail was a basal cell carcinoma.  It was my choice, but he recommended cutting out that piece of the nail just to be sure.  If the mark came off with the nail, no problem, if not ...let the boys in the lab tell us what it is.

So today, here I am back in a foot surgeon's office

Tools at the ready, toe anesthetized and painted with iodine

Snip. snip

And the mystery solved!

I emerge with a bandaid

Plus three weeks of vinegar solution foot baths and special cream.

All's well that end's well!