Teddi Mellencamp Arroyave documents the latest in her melanoma journey.
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills The alum, 42, posted a photo on Instagram on Saturday showing a significant scar on her back, following surgery to remove the cancer.
“Someone just told me that my scar looks like a whale swallowing bubbles. It made me laugh,” began the post by Mellencamp Arroyave — who shared that in September she was diagnosed with her 13th melanoma in the past year — before asking followers to share what they saw in the picture of her scar.
“I’m not very artistic so all I see is ‘Z’— what do you see?* *funnyresponsesonly,” she added, including the hashtag for “#SkinCancerAwareness” and tagging “@curemelanoma.”
Teddi Mellencamp, who was diagnosed with No. 13 melanoma in September, shared a picture of the scar on Instagram on Saturday.
Teddy Mellencamp/Instagram
Teddi Mellencamp begins immunotherapy after her latest melanoma diagnosis
In the comments section of her post, Mellencamp Arroyave’s followers and friends were quick to respond with positive statements.
“I see wicked 🔥❤️”, he wrote The Real Housewives of Orange County star Emily Simpson, doc Bachelor alum Kailtyn Bristowe shared a similar sentiment, commenting, “I see a wicked woman.”
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Earlier this week, Mellencamp Arroyave shared a photo of herself in the hospital on Instagram, stating that her surgery “went well,” before explaining the procedure to her followers.
“I specifically went through ‘wide excision melanoma, soft tissue defect reconstruction with adjacent tissue rearrangement.’ They basically cut out my shoulder area and replaced it with a flap of skin from the bottom of my back (swipe to see the pre-op area). But the pain and discomfort is worth it,” she explained.
The reality star then thanked her followers and friends for their support through her latest experience with the disease.
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“The outpouring of love and prayers in the comments and DMs has left me speechless (which is hard). I wish I could reply to everyone, but please know that I am forever grateful.” wrote Mellencamp Arroyave.
“Please get your skin checked. I promise you don’t want to go through this. #skincancerawareness #melanomaawareness,” she concluded the post.
In November, Mellencamp Arroyave revealed that the immunotherapy she was undergoing for melanoma was not effective and that doctors were increasing her dose.
“Now that the noise has died down and I can focus on important things like my family and my health, I wanted to give a little update since so many of you have been asking,” she began her Instagram caption.
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Teddi Mellencamp shares a photo of her melanoma on Instagram.
Teddy Mellencamp/Instagram
Mellencamp Arroyave continued, “My initial immunotherapy prescription didn’t work, so my doctor increased the dose. And now we’re seeing some progress. So, in two weeks, I’ll have a doctor’s visit and we’ll see how effective it was.”
“Thank you for all your prayers and messages. I couldn’t do it without you,” she concluded the post.
Mellencamp Arroyave has experienced 12 previous cases of Melanona, after being first diagnosed with stage 2 melanoma in October 2022.
In December of that year, she spoke to PEOPLE about how her illness prompted her to speak out and warn others to be careful when dealing with new skin spots and to follow up with their doctor.
“Skin checks are essential,” the star said at the time. “We’ve seen how quickly it can go from one melanoma to 12. So when your doctor says, ‘See you in three months,’ that’s three months.”
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Source: HIS Education