Hello everyone! I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! Stella had a great time, but was very exhausted by the end of the day.
So you may be wondering what the title of this blog is all about....solitary mastocytoma...what is that?? That is what Stella has been diagnosed with. If you do not know, Stella has a small oval marking on her head. We noticed it when she was 7 weeks old. I did not think anything of it and thought maybe it was cradle cap. When she was 12 weeks old something very scary happened. We were in California at my Grandmother's home when Stella started to turn red in the face, all over her body and head. She wasn't crying or acting like she was in pain. The redness went away in a matter of minutes but then the marking on her head started to turn white...then bubble into a blister! We were referred to a dermatologist by our pediatrican (who had NO idea what it was). The dermatologist took a biopsy and it came back as solitary mastocytoma. Here are a few facts on it:
What is Mastocytoma? Mastocytoma is the name given to a localised form of mastocytosis. Mastocytosis occurs when there are too many mast cells in the skin. The cause is unknown.
What do they look like? Mastocytoma usually appears in early childhood at a few months of age. One or more red, pink or yellow lumps, which may vary in size from about one to 5 centimetres in diameter and can appear anywhere on the skin. Rubbing causes mastocytomas to redden and swell for 15 minutes or so. Often there are no symptoms but they may be itchy and sometimes they may blister, especially when rubbed. Occasionally flushing may occur when the mast cells release chemicals such as histamine into the skin.
Treatment? If the mastocytoma is causing a lot of itching, this can often be relieved with oral antihistamines. No other treatment is necessary as mastocytomas usually disappear as the child grows older.
There are "triggers" that can bring on an outbreak. This can be certain foods, stress, too hot, too cold and her rubbing the spot. The only times we have seen an outbreak is when she rubs her head on something. I am posting this because she just had an outbreak yesterday :( She had gone about 6 weeks without one. She has a mat that has soft polls above it with toys. She rubbed her head on the polls resulting in an outbreak. Before you go googling this please beware, there are some really scary pictures, but this is not the form Stella has. There are different forms of masto where it is all over the body, this is not what Stella has. The doctor informed us not to worry and that it will be gone by 2 years of age (or a little later). There is no cure, but hopefully one day there will be! Okay, this is the longest post ever. Hope you are still awake!
Merry "almost" Christmas
Candace
4 comments:
Wow Candy, how scary to be going through this. I'm so glad to hear that Stella doesn't have a serious form and that it should go away within the first couple years. We'll be praying that she stays healthy and has very few episodes. We got your Christmas picture - thanks! She is so sweet and you and Roger look great! Much love, Teresa
My son has had a spot on his neck since he was a couple months old. It hasn't been an issue until just last week. He is having redness all over his body with exposure to heat or touch. My ped diagnosed solitary mastocytoma. I as a mother am seriously concerned. Can you tell me how your little one is? My son just turned 2 in Apil.
It did blister and it does flare up but it gets rubbed by his cars seat straps.
My son was born with a mastocytoma on his chest and after pleading with his doctor and threatening to get a new doctor, it was finally diagnosed. The tumor is generally only cutaneous when diagnosed in birth to 2 years of age. But the tumor is misdiagnosed because special dyes have to be used to diagnose it. The severity of this tumor depends on which grade (1-3) and what stage (1-4) the tumor is. They usually dissapear by puberty but can often stay to turn systemic or ultimately although rarely malignant. There are many things to be aware of....for example certain things such as bee stings, medications, foods (nuts, eggs, berries, etc.), severe changes in temp's, or scratching can cause anaphalaxis in extreme cases or flushing, breathing or gi pains more commonly. You should always carry an Epi-pen and antihistamine with the child. Be very cautious to the medications your child is given. For example N-SAIDS, aspirins, anesthetics including local, etc should be avoided. Make sure to educate everyone who watches or comes in contact with your child, although these more severe reactions are not so common, they do happen. My son has many medications he has to take every day because he constantly has allergy and breathing problems. Also things like exercise, extreme climate changes and foods (they should avoid the foods that cause the most allergies, because although they may not be allergic to them today, but might cause anaphalaxis tomorrow) and any disruption to thebtumor should be closely monitored. If your child becomes flushed and tachycardic (can feel the rapid beat of their heart by placing your hand over their chest) make sure to set them down and monitor them. I hope your child's mastocytoma does not proove to be too problematic. But with proper treatment and monitoring, you and you child can live a happy healthy life.
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