Hi Emily,

I know how worrying & stressful this is & unfortunately, until the biopsy results come back, no one can guess what they will be.

All moles that are removed are sent for an urgent biopsy - all this means is that these samples get looked at first in the queue - non urgent samples (such as non melanoma cancers) can take as much as 3 months for the results to come back whereas urgent ones are currently taking about 4 to 6 weeks (pre-Covid it was 2 weeks). 

As a biopsy is the only way to rule out melanoma you will find that consultants deal with patient interaction differently. Most dermatologists won't give anything away because they really can't tell, even with the use of a dermascope - so many will be non committal until the results come back. However, I've found Plastic Surgeons can be a little more forthcoming & blunt in their assessment but it doesn't mean they know more than the dermatologist or are correct in their assumption! I've had 7 moles/lesions removed over the years - one was melanoma & the others were benign. My consultant thought one of them was a basal cell carcinoma (non melanoma skin cancer) - the plastic surgeon thought it looked like a melanoma - the biopsy results showed it was a dermatafibroma (calcified insect bite)! So I take no notice of their assumptions & I just wait for the biopsy results!

With a family history of melanoma it's good that you are getting checked out. It doesn't necessarily mean you will get melanoma, it just means that your chance of getting it is slightly raised if you have one or more close relatives with the disease (close relatives being parent, sibling, child, grandparent, aunt or uncle). To give this some context - I have had melanoma for 24 years - my brother, niece & nephew have had dodgy moles removed but they haven't got melanoma. Their's are called dysplastic (atypical) moles - they look dodgy but are benign. However, they have the ability to turn cancerous in the future if not removed. We were all under the same dermatologist & we were part of her familial melanoma research project. The odds are a little more raised & it teaches the whole family to be more skin aware & take care in the sun.

During Covid, results are being given differently by different hospitals. You could get a phone call or an appointment letter asking you to go in for them to give face to face results - it doesn't necessarily mean it's bad news - sometimes it's because the consultant wants to check any other moles & the surgical wound, especially if the mole comes back as dysplastic. On rare occasions, for good results, they will give them by letter. 

There is still a good chance that yours is benign so try not to focus on it being bad news. If it is melanoma there's a good chance of it was caught early & will be easily treatable. Try to distract yourself until the results come through. Good luck and please let us know how you get on,

Angie (Stage 3 melanoma patient)