Published Aug 17, 2024

End Of Summer Health Alert: Man Diagnosed With Stage Four Melanoma In His 30s Had His Eye Removed. Now He’s Urging Others To ‘Take Precautions’ Against Skin Cancer

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Understanding Melanoma

Ross Ellis, a dad of two and loving husband, was in his 30s when he lost his eye during a battle with melanoma, a type of skin cancer—and now he’s urging others to “take precautions.”
Ellis was first diagnosed with stage two melanoma in 2015, which he beat after getting it removed, but in 2023, he was diagnosed with stage four melanoma and needed his eye removed. He ultimately underwent dual immunotherapy to get rid of the tumors in his liver, brain, and lung.
Melanoma starts in the same cells that give your skin, hair, and eyes their color. In melanoma, the cells change, allowing them to spread to other organs.
The most important thing to look out for when finding melanoma in its early stages is a new spot on your skin or a spot changing in size, shape, or color.
Immunotherapy, the type of treatment Ellis underwent, is a type of cancer treatment that harnesses the body’s immune system to help combat cancer cells.

Ross Ellis, from Plymouth, England, was in his 30s when he lost his eye during a battle with stage four melanoma—and now he’s urging others to “take precautions” against the dangers of sun exposure.

Ellis, university administration worker needed to have his eye removed after the late-stage cancer spread to his lungs, liver, and brain last year. His metastatic skin cancer diagnosis came eight years after he underwent treatment following the discovery of as cancerous mole.

Speaking to BBC Radio Cornwall in a recent interview, the dad of two and loving husband, admitted he suspects a prior sunburn led to his cancer.

He thinks a sunburn he suffered when he was just a teenager was the reason he was diagnosed with skin cancer.

Back in 2015, Ellis was first diagnosed with stage two melanoma in a mole, which was removed via surgery. A lymph node biopsy ultimately revealed his cancer was successfully removed.

Then, in 2023, the cancer spread via multiple tumors and left him blind in one of his eyes, prompting him to undergo “immediate” surgery to remove his eye—something he described as a “brutal operation.”

Following Ellis’ eye removal in the latter part of 2023, he started a new type of treatment called dual immunotherapy to get rid of the tumors in his liver, brain, and lung.

Thankfully, he was declared to be “cancer-free” after three dual immunotherapy sessions, done through an intravenous drip.

“I had a complete response,” Ellis explained to BBC, referring to his successful treatment. “It took out all the legions in my lung, liver, brain – unfortunately the side effects took the organs with it – I had hepatitis, diabetes, lung infections.”

He continued, “You’ll go through the side effects if it means you’re going to live.”

The side effects of immunotherapy for melanoma

Due to his shocking battle with stage four melanoma, Ellis is now using his cancer story to encourage others to take sun safety measures and be aware of the dangers of sun exposure.

“Melanoma is very dangerous and you need to take precautions,” he urged.

Understanding Melanomas

The main types of skin cancer include basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, and melanoma. Melanoma also causes the most skin cancer deaths, according to the National Cancer Institute.

Changes to a mole you’ve had for a while or a new growth on your skin could be signs of melanoma, according to SurvivorNet’s experts. You’ll want to watch them and tell your doctor about any changes you notice.

You’re most likely to find melanoma on sun-exposed skin areas like your face, neck, arms, and legs. Surprisingly, you might also find them in other places as well, like:

The palms of your hands or soles of your feet
On your eyes or mouth
Under your nails

SurvivorNet experts recommend avoiding unprotected sun exposure because ultraviolet (UV) radiation can lead to melanoma. Tanning beds pose ultraviolet radiation risks for skin cancer and should be avoided. Many dermatologists recommend using spray tans to reduce the risk of melanoma skin cancer.

What Are the Symptoms of Melanoma?

The most important thing to look out for when it comes to finding melanoma is a new spot on your skin or a spot that is changing in size, shape, or color, SurvivorNet’s medical experts say.

When you check your skin, use the acronym ABCDE as your guide:

Asymmetrical moles: If you drew a line straight down the center of the mole, would the sides match?
Borders: Is the mole irregular or jagged?
Colors: Are there multiple distinct colors in the mole?
Diameter: Is the mole larger than 6 millimeters (mm), about the size of a pencil head eraser?
Evolution: Has the mole’s color, shape, or size changed over time?

If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, our experts say it’s time to see your dermatologist for a skin check.

Treating Melanoma

With breakthrough treatments like targeted therapy and immunotherapy now available, people who are diagnosed today with melanoma have a much better chance of living a long and healthy life than ever before.

The American Cancer Society says the five-year survival rate for localized melanoma that has not spread is 99%. For melanoma that has spread to other parts of the body, the five-year survival rate drops to 71% for regional spread and 32% for distant spread.

If you’re diagnosed with melanoma, there’s a good chance surgery is going to be the treatment your doctor recommends. In the early stages of the disease, removing the cancer usually leads to a cure.

WATCH: What Is Mohs Surgery?

For an early-stage melanoma that is close to the skin surface, Mohs surgery might be an option. This technique removes skin cancer, layer by layer, until all the cancer is gone.

Stage 1 melanoma surgery consists of simple, in-office removal of the cancerous cells by a dermatologist. If the cancer is thicker, your surgeon will remove it through a technique called wide excision surgery.

Stage 2 and stage 3 melanoma surgeries are performed by surgeons or surgical oncologists, not dermatologists. You may also have a sentinel lymph node biopsy to see if the melanoma has spread to the first lymph node where it’s most likely to travel. If your cancer has reached this first lymph node, it may have spread to other neighboring lymph nodes and organs.

After surgery, the removed tissue and lymph nodes are examined to measure the melanoma and find out if it has clear margins. Clear margins mean the cells around the area of tissue that was removed don’t contain any melanoma. When there aren’t any cancer cells left around the removed area, your cancer is less likely to come back.

Treatment for stage 4 melanoma has changed over the years. Targeted drugs and immunotherapy have been shown to be more effective than chemotherapy.

For melanoma patients who need additional treatment after surgery, they are likely to receive adjuvant therapy (treatments administered after surgery). Adjuvant therapy is designed to improve outcomes and decrease the risk of recurrence. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved some adjuvant therapy treatments for melanoma, which include:

Pembrolizumab (Keytruda) – This medication is an immunotherapy that helps your immune system attack and kill cancer cells. It is a PD1 inhibitor drug that works by blocking the PD1 pathway used by cancer cells to hide from the immune system.
Nivolumab (Opdivo) – Another form of immunotherapy, nivolumab is a PD1 inhibitor that works similarly to pembrolizumab.
Dabrafenib (Tafinlar) and trametinib (Mekinist) combination – This is a targeted therapy combo for patients with a BRAF V600E/K mutation fueling their cancer. About 50% of melanomas have BRAF mutations.
Ipilimumab (Yervoy) – This medication is also an immunotherapy. Ipilimumab works by blocking CTLA4 protein, which is found normally on T-cells, and keeps immune cells alert to fight off cancer cells and stop their growth.
Interferon alpha (FDA-approved, but no longer recommended by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) Melanoma Panel.)

Surgery is the Best Option for Melanoma

Questions to Ask Your Doctor

If you are diagnosed with skin cancer, you may have some questions for your doctor. SurvivorNet suggests some of the following to help you on your cancer journey.

What type of skin cancer do I have?
What treatment options exist for my type of melanoma?
Will insurance cover this treatment?
Would treatment through a clinical trial make sense for me?
What resources exist to help manage my anxiety because of this diagnosis?