NORFOLK, Va (WAVY) — Nicole Pellegrino is really into running.
“I’m an avid runner, I’ve been running since I was in middle school,” she told WAVY.
She even has fancy shamrock running shoes with gold laces to rock in the upcoming Shamrock Half Marathon in Virginia Beach. She plans to run to raise awareness and funds for research on melanoma.
“The reason why I chose it is because, unfortunately, I lost my father-in-law 10 years ago to melanoma,” she told WAVY.
Dr. Thomas Pellegrino was a highly regarded educator at Eastern Virginia Medical School in Norfolk. He loved the outdoors.
“It was a wake-up call for all of us. He never had the opportunity to meet me and my husband Dan’s son, Stephen, who is now 7 years old.” Nicole Pellegrino said.
EVMS Dermatologist Dr. Thomas Chu told WAVY when caught early, the five-year survival rate for melanoma is 99% — but once it spreads to another organ the survival rate plummets to 27%.
“People say, ‘Well I wish somebody had told me earlier to wear protective gear to stay out of the sun,'” Chu said.
He prescribes sunscreen with an SPF of at least 30. It takes about a shot glass full to cover an average-size adult.
“The most important thing is detecting skin changes,” said Chu.
He shared with us the A-B-C-D-Es of detection.
- A- Asymmetry — that’s when one half of a mole doesn’t match the other
- B- is for uneven Borders
- C- the Color — it should be uniform either tan or brown not a variety.
- D- is for Diameter — it should be no larger than a pencil eraser
- E- Evolution — it changes
Nicole Pellegrino, who works in fundraising at EVMS, has already exceeded her goal of $500, but with the luck of the Irish, the pot of gold will grow and lives will be saved.
