Springs woman helps in fight against melanoma

A Colorado Springs woman is in the battle of her life. She’s fighting melanoma.

In the process, she’s also helping others battling the disease around the world.

It all started when Kelly Howard’s husband, Josh, noticed what she thought was a freckle on her back.

That small spot turned out to be melanoma.

Howard had the mole removed and went through treatment before spending two to three years cancer-free.

But then the cancer returned with vengeance.

It had spread to her shoulder, sternum, lungs, spine and brain.

“It’s a super-aggressive disease, moves very quickly,” Howard said. “And, without treatment, it is fatal.”

Colorado has one of the highest rates of melanoma in the country.

One in 39 men will get the disease while one in 60 women will be affected.

Dr. Rene Gonzales at the University of Colorado Cancer Center has been fighting the disease for years.

But, during that time, he’s seen little progress toward a cure. In fact, for most, the diagnosis has essentially been a death sentence.

In the past few years, however, all of that has changed. And Howard has been a big part of that.

She was part of a clinical trial for a PD-1 inhibitor drug that was just approved by the FDA in September.

Dr. Gonzales admits the progress he’s seen in the fight against melanoma in recent years is something he never expected to see in his lifetime.

Now, melanoma is not always a death sentence. And Kelly Howard is living proof.

:That’s the exciting part is that we are in a day in age now where they have this amazing drug, where, I could have been dead, but now I’m not, so there’s no excuse now, you know, to avoid checking yourself out,” Howard said.

And Dr. Gonzales has tips on how to check yourself and stay protected. He says to follow the ABCDs.

A is for asymmetry: If you fold the mole in half, both sides should match.

B is for border: The border should be regular and smooth.

C is for color: There should be no variation in color.

D is for diameter: The lesion should be smaller than the size of a dime.