I did a post back in August of last year about my friend Larissa's journey through breast cancer. Larissa was just recently diagnosed with cancer again. This time it was skin cancer, basal cell carcinoma.

I asked Larissa if she would talk about her experience and how it felt to be diagnosed with cancer yet again. Larissa blogs at Welcome to the Dallehouse.

How did you find out you had skin cancer?

I had a red patch on my face that didn't go away for several months. I kept an eye on it and noticed it was getting larger so I made an appointment with a dermatologist. The dermatologist thought it looked suspicious and did a shave biopsy. The biopsy came back positive for basal cell carcinoma.

What types treatments were recommended?

MOHS surgery was recommended since the lesion was on my face. It is the least invasive procedure. The surgeon removes the lesion and sends it to the lab while you wait. After about an hour or so, they can tell if they have clean margins. If not, they can tell exactly where the remaining cancer is and just remove another layer. That is sent to the lab and the process is continued until all is clear.

What treatments did you receive?

I underwent the MOHS surgery and I got clean margins in two takes. The entire process lasted about 4 1/2 hours, most of it waiting for the lab results. And even though the lesion was so small (about the size of a pencil eraser), it left me with about a two inch scar. They have to cut about four times the length of the mass in order to be able to stitch it back up in a straight line.

As a breast cancer survivor and skin cancer survivor, how to you feel emotionally about being diagnosed twice? Was the second one easier to handle mentally since you have went through breast cancer?

The doctors told me that off all cancers to get this was the best. No chemo. It has an excellent cure rate and it almost never metastasizes. But still in the back of my head I kept thinking "OK, what is next?" This cancer was easy to find because it was on my face, staring back at me everyday in the mirror. But what about other cancers that could be lurking inside, hiding in organs and bones? I started to really not trust my body. Plus I don't fit the criteria for someone with skin cancer. I don't have fair skin, light hair nor blue eyes. I don't spend lots of time in the sun. And I am relatively young. The nurse told me I was a baby compared to most of their patients. But I've heard that before. I thought I was too young for breast cancer.

Even for all the self doubt, I still wasn't too worried about this particular diagnosis. From everything I read about basal cell and MOHS, I thought it was going to be a breeze. And I was fine for the first couple of hours during surgery. It really wasn't until the nurse asked if I wanted to see the scar in the mirror before they patched me up, that I started to fall apart. All kinds of memories came back. All the time spent in oncologist's offices. All the surgeries. All the scars. First they took my breast. Then they took a piece of my back to create a new breast. And now my face! I just lost it and started crying. I think if this was my first cancer, it wouldn't have been such a big deal. It would have just felt more like a procedure, like having your wisdom teeth removed.

Wear sunscreen. Know you body. If you notice anything that looks different, get it checked out. The sooner it is caught, the better your prognosis. If I had ignored this lesion, over the years it would have grown and could have done serious cosmetic damage to my face. It could have even spread to my cheek bone. And that would be much worse than a two inch scar.

It's been two weeks since surgery. And I am feeling better. I am starting to get used to the scar. I suppose it gives me character. Plus I can always make up interesting stories on how I got it. It makes me look tough.