Feature Story

Extra-mammary Paget’s disease survivor: Time matters

Extra-mammary Paget’s disease survivor: Time matters

In 2013, Sandy Fontan was a 53-year-old marathon runner in tip-top shape. She maintained a healthy diet and ran between 25 and 30 miles a week. Then, one day, she noticed a little bump on her anus. It didn’t hurt or bleed, so she thought it was a hemorrhoid. She watched it for more than a year before mentioning it to her gynecologist.

Today, Sandy wishes she’d mentioned it sooner. Because that little bump turned out to be something more serious: an extremely rare type of cancer called extra-mammary Paget’s disease, which usually appears on the skin of the breast.

‘Jock Itch’ Nearly Killed Me: A cancer patient’s odyssey to find health and support

‘Jock Itch’ Nearly Killed Me: A cancer patient’s odyssey to find health and support

It all started with a small purple pimple on my scrotum. I was pretty sure it was an ingrown hair, so it was easy to ignore. Then it turned into a dime-sized rash that looked and felt a lot like jock itch. I wasn’t overly concerned.

When I finally showed the rash to my family doctor, nine months later, she concurred with my self-diagnosis and suggested trying a different antifungal cream. When the rash didn’t go away I went back to my doctor and she invited one of her colleagues to also take a look. They both agreed it was jock itch but I just needed a stronger treatment. By this time the dime-sized rash had grown to the size of a quarter.

After a year, when the rash remained, I decided to ask my dermatologist to take a look. (As someone with a past history of malignant melanoma – diagnosed more than two decades ago – I visit a dermatologist annually.) The dermatologist continued down the same path of treating a fungal problem. On the second visit he decided I must have an allergic reaction from either shampoo, soap or fabric softener. After five more months of chasing the problem, I requested a biopsy.

Living with a rare skin disease

Living with a rare skin disease

David Kendall shares his story

David Kendall has Extramammary Paget’s disease (EMPD), a rare cancer-related condition which is characterised externally by a chronic eczema-style rash of the skin in the anogenital regions or as is the case with David, the groin area.

Doctors described David’s EMPD case as “one in a million” due to its rarity, with the result being that he has found it difficult to access definitive information about it online.

East Kilbride family man takes on Men's 10K on Father's Day for charity based on his own experiences with skin cancer

East Kilbride family man takes on Men's 10K on Father's Day for charity based on his own experiences with skin cancer

An East Kilbride dad will take on a charity 10K on Father’s Day as he bids to raise money based on his own experiences with skin cancer. 

Dad-of-two David Kendall (57), who suffers from a skin condition called Extramammary Paget’s disease (EMPD), hopes his efforts will boost the funds of the British Skin Foundation by £1000.

The illness is a rare cancer-related condition which is characterised externally by a chronic eczema-style rash of the skin in the anogenital regions, and in David’s case, the groin area.

© myEMPD.com • Helping those with extramammary Paget’s disease (EMPD).