Bump

I just had a similar experience in july, doctor in rputine check spotted a mile that i had checked 12 months before. I was referred to a dermatologist who temoved it and tested it. It came back as sage 0 melanoma (melanoma in situ). I had second surgery to remove area around the scar yesterday. I felt very reassured by the surgeon, he really said in 99 % of cases the second surgery is a precautionand won’t contain cancer cells. Try to thi k positive (easier said than done i onow) await the results, it could be nothing at all, if it is usually a minor procedure gets rid of it and you’ll carry on as you were before. Best of luck and try to keep smiling  

Hi,

I know how frightening this can be but please know that 75% of patients seen by dermatology result in a clean bill of health. If dermatology think the mole looks fine in the photos you can breathe a sigh of relief. If they think it needs checking with a dermascope, it will show them if there are any cell changes & if it needs removing. If it shows no cell changes you can breathe a sigh of relief. If they are unsure, they will suggest it's removal for a biopsy.

Most moles turn out to be benign or dysplastic (also known as atypical or precancerous). Dysplastic moles are removed to ensure that they don't turn cancerous in the future. Of the 25% that are diagnosed as melanoma, the majority are caught early (either Stage 0 also known as in-situ or Stage 1). Stage 0 melanomas can't spread because they have been caught whilst they are still on the top layer of skin whilst Stage 1 melanomas have a very, very small chance of spreading (approximately 2%). It's good when a melanoma has been caught early as treatment is usually successful and the patient has no further problems. 

So bearing all that in mind, try not to think the worst. The odds are good it's not melanoma or if it is, it's been caught at an early stage and can be treated successfully. Try not to let your mind jump to the worst case scenario because that happens to only a very small percentage of people. Find ways to distract yourself whilst waiting for the photos and their outcome. Meanwhile, don't Google as it doesn't help, it just fuels anxiety. This CRUK site and the Melanoma Focus site are the best places to look if you feel the need to Google.

Good luck and please let us know how you get on,

Angie (Stage 3 melanoma patient since 2009)

Did you hear anything more? 

Not really much advice, just try and stay positive and try to have someone who is reassuring around you. Ask all the questions you can, make notes to take. 

I've just had two removed in last two days. I'm scared myself for the results as I have other symptoms going on and 3 small boys. I feel that fear. 

I hope you get good news and all is ok.  x

Good luck, hope they're benign.

Just to update on this post my results after the wide local excision were all clear. Went back to dermatologist to recheck all other moles and nothing else gives her cause for concern so nothing more for me to do except sun cream, cover up and recheck everything in 12 months time! Hope all others have now had good news

I'm really glad you've had the all clear. Just keep an eye on those lymph nodes as I'm sure the doctors have advised. Not to worry about it but to be cautious and everyone should be wearing sun cream these days. The UV index is pretty high at times in the UK. I'll never not take that seriously again