Hi Simscheryl,

Welcome to Cancer Chat. It's good to hear you got this checked out - it seems like the doctor wasn't overly concerned, but you will have opportunities to ask more questions at your next appointment.

We have some information about WLE on our website in case you want to take a look. While waiting for your appointment, try to keep your mind off things by keeping busy and focusing on other things as much as possible. I know this can be easier said than done.

I hope it's not too long to wait for your appointment.

Wishing you all the best,

Ben
Cancer Chat Moderator

Good luck I had a mole removed from inbetween my toes this week. Now I wait for biopsy results.

Hi there,

I know this is scary but I wanted to quickly provide you with some things that happened on my journey which you might find reassuring.

1. My GP was extremely concerned about my mole. She said it ticked all the ABCDE's and she was so worried she kept taking pictures and then wanted a second look!

2. I saw the dermatologist who said almost the exact same as you, "That's got to come off"

3. My mole was big, had changed, assymetrical, uneven borders, and it was even firm, hard, and scaling to boot.

4. I also went straight into a WLE (I think this might be standard practice now as part of a belts and braces approach)

5. After months of letting the above worm it's way into my thoughts, I was told that the mole was benign. Yes - it was absolutely nothing.

The fact that she's on the fence is a good sign. From my experience, there's three types of moles that dermatologists see - those that are definitely fine, those that are definitely bad, and those that are in the grey area. Sometimes moles can behave weirdly and for these, it's difficult to tell what they are without a biopsy (hence they order a biopsy to be safe).

I'm not saying the above to say that it will definitely be OK. No one can guarantee that, but I want to make it known that you shouldn't let anxiety rule over your life like it did for me, and try not to think the worst of things until you know for sure. Even if it is something, these things tend to have excellent outlooks when caught early.

You also mentioned that you're worried it changed a while ago and you're scared you just noticed it. Late stage melanoma is often a lot more distinguished, and dermatologists can generally spot these before even the biopsy. I do know someone who was unfortunately diagnosed with a melanoma that they ignored for 2-3 years, but were fortunate enough that it was still stage 1 and highly treatable.

I really hope the WLE goes OK for you and you manage to find some peace of mind while you wait.

Thank you so much for taking the time to write such a detailed post. I have managed to carry on with life during the wait, pretty much telling myself that regardless of what it is, worrying and stressing won't change it either way, so there's no point in doing it. This thinking has really helped me carry on with a bit of normality in my life and there are honestly times I completely forget what I'm waiting for. 
 

Excision is tomorrow. Fingers crossed I can get off the couch sooner rather than later as I'm dreading not being able to be active, especially when the weather has been so nice lately. 
 

Thank you again for the response and so glad to hear yours was benign. It is people like yourself and others on this forum that have been absolutely invaluable in providing a bit of comfort in times of distress! 
 

I have now had the lesion excision and it was not a WLE. I asked the doctor this before we started and he explained to me that it was an excision with 2mm of healhy skin around the mole. He was very good and said that "in the rare case that it does come back as something from the biopsy, we would do a WLE then." 
 

The whole team that saw to me yesterday (there were 5 of them in the room!) were very encouraging and kind and put me at complete ease. I have to say that regardless of the outcome, I have had such a positive experience with the NHS. 
 

Now the wait for results begins. Could be 3-4 weeks. 

Hi there, 

I'm glad to hear you had a "good" experience and that the excision itself wasn't too stressful for you!

Just been reading through this discussion as I have just been to the Dr this morning with a changed mole on my breast. He has also referred me straight to have it removed. I'm just wondering, do you know if it is just standard practice to have the biopsy done? I didn't ask him about this during my appointment and am now wondering whether I will ever know if it's a melanoma or if I'll just be left to worry that it was cancer which has spread elsewhere..

Hi, I am in no way and expert on this topic, as I only posted on this forum due to my own fears regarding a dodgy mole and wanted to hear others experiences. That being said, I would think that if your mole is biopsied, they would definitely tell you the results, regardless of what those results are. Also, I'm sure that when you go in for the procedure, you can ask some more questions. For example, I asked/verified if it was a WLE when I went in and was given a lot more information than at the initial examination with the CNS. 

To finish up this thread, and to give others an idea of waiting times in Cornwall, I received my biopsy results on Friday. My lesion came back as benign wih no further treatment needed. Waiting time was 2 and a half weeks, so very quick. I also received my results via letter in the mail. Not sure if that is standard practice, or if that only happens when results are not abnormal, but either way, what a relief! 
 

I know I spent weeks reading through the posts on this forum, looking for answers/reassurance and I know that everyone's experiences are different, so wanted to share my own experience too. 
 

Finally, I've seen some other posts asking about excisions on the bottom of the foot, and wanted to let others know that mine was on the bottom of my baby toe. 4 stitches and no pain at all. Could walk on it normally within a day (although I tried not to for a few days as I was worried about infection due to it being on the bottom of my foot).