Hello Cindylou,

Welcome to Cancer Chat Cindylou. I was very touched to read in your About Me that you are keeping "110% positive in front of him but alone is a different story". This is why coming to this forum can be of great help as you can be yourself here and share your fears and feelings with others you may not know in real life but who understand only too well what you are going through.

We have some information on our website on immunotherapy for melanoma which you can find more about here  and if you want to talk about everything in depth don't hesitate to give our nurses a ring on this free number 0808 800 4040 - their line is open Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm.

I thought I would also let you know about a couple of threads on melanoma and immunotherapy that have been posted in our forum in recent months. [@jask]‍ , who has been caring for a person who has been diagnosed with stage 3 melanoma, posted recently here and was looking to hear of people's experiences with immunotherapy. Feel free to respond to the thread if you wish. Another useful thread for you would be this one by [@Ruthn123]‍ who is currently having immunotherapy treatment for melanoma and I hope she will see your post and share her story with you. Another wonderful person for you to talk to would be [@AngieT]‍ who has extensive experience with melanoma and I hope she'll pop by and chat to you about this.

I think it is worth getting his cough investigated if you haven't done this already and make sure he mentions to the doctor that he has stage 4 melanoma.

We're all here whenever you need to chat so don't bottle things up I am sure you will meet some great people here who know exactly what you and your fiance are going through at the moment.

Best wishes,

Lucie, Cancer Chat Moderator

Hi Cindylou,

I'm sorry to hear about the worries for your fiance. You say he has been Stage 4 for 5 years and is now being advised to have immunotherapy treatment? What treatment has he been receiving up to now and has it stopped working? Where has the melanoma spread to as this may determine the type of treatment options he has? Immunotherapy, like any cancer treatment, has several side effects, however not having the treatment may make a difference to his prognosis. This is something that his consultant or Specialist Nurse will explain to him. Also, he should mention his cough to his consultant so they can rule out any connection to melanoma. 

Try not to upset yourself with your worries but instead take an active part in helping him by reading the link Lucie has given and make notes of questions to ask the consultant when you go to the appointment with your fiance. Knowledge is power and will help you both understand the options and lessen your worries. Please let us know how you get on.

Angie (Stage 3 patient)