Hi Anna,

It really depends on the dermatologist. Some will stick their necks out and say if they think it looks like melanoma whilst others will say it looks dodgy enough to be removed for biopsy without committing themselves. My dermatologist, 22 years ago, took one look at my mole and said she thought it was melanoma. She called in a colleague who agreed with her. It was confirmed by biopsy. I add, that she is very, very good at recognising melanoma and she is now the chair of NICE for melanoma! 

The best thing is that any mole that doesn't obviously appear benign under a dermascope must be removed for biopsy. It's emotionally draining waiting for surgery and results but at least you have a 100% true diagnosis and then get treatment if it's positive for mm. Hang on in there and I hope you get a date through quickly.

Angie x

Hi Anna 

So sorry I have been away from the forum - it’s been a bit of a hectic time and couldn’t find a spare moment to get on! 

How are things going for you? Xx 

Have you heard anything about your appointment? Xx 

I do hope so - this waiting around is awful, I know! 

Would you believe...I spotted a new freckle/mole on my stomach a few days ago. 

*massive eye roll* 

(....I’ve got my very close eye on it!!) 

Hi,

I just wanted to pop on quickly to say I recently had two ‘dodgy’ looking moles removed from my back - both came back as perfectly normal simple moles.

One of the moles has always been large and raised, never bothered me much because it was on my back! Over Christmas my husband commented that it looked red. Prompting me to have a meltdown and referral! At the appointment the Dr spotted a smaller mole with a dodgy looking patch of colour and blood vessels so took that off too.

So not quite the same as yours physically but an example of biopsies turning out fine.

Best of luck

Claire xx

Thanks for joining in, Claire! 

Glad yours turned out to be innocent - it just goes to show that even the most dodgy looking ones may well be nothing to be concerned about. 

We’ll keep fingers crossed that this is also the case for Anna xx :)

Hi Anna,

You’ve come to the right place to offload. Unfortunately, none of us are doctors on the site just cancer pilgrims, so we can only talk from our own experience. I have had 2 bouts of breast cancer in the past 9 years. Last summer my Lymphoedema nurse advised me to get a suspicious mole looked at. I saw the dermatologist and she assured me that it was nothing to worry about.

However,  I now have a mole on my face, which I’ve had for a few years. It sits just under my glasses frame, so it’s not that noticeable and is very small. It is not raised at all and has never bled or increased in size.

My son noticed it at Christmas and advised me to get it looked at. I saw my GP on the Monday, was referred to medical imaging and seen on the Tuesday. My photos were then sent to a dermatologist, who prioritises the cases for appointments. By Friday I had an appointment for the following Monday. This is amazingly quick for a dermatology appointment, so I didn’t expect good news.

This was just as well, because I didn’t get any. I was offered 2 choices. Either I could get a biopsy done straight away, but this would leave an additional scar on a very obvious part of my face, or she could refer me directly to the plastic surgeons. She thought that they might go ahead with surgery without a biopsy, as they would realise that the lesion needed to come out regardless. She thought that they might wait until they sent my excised mole to pathology for analysis to find out exactly what it was.

She said that it could be one of two things – a lentigo maligna (which is pre-cancerous) or a lentigo maligna melanoma (which is cancerous). The latter is deeper into the tissue and needs a much larger margin when it is removed. This is going to be difficult to get because of where the mole is positioned, so she said that I would need a skin graft after surgery. It is close to the eye and the nasal passages. Even grafting could prove difficult because the skin under the eye is different from that of the cheek.

If it turns out to be a Lentigo Maligna the outlook is good because it is normally a contained lesion, which is caused by UV rays. However, if it is a Lentigo Maligna Melanoma, this can spread to lymph nodes and other organs. I was told that I shouldn’t have more than a couple of weeks to wait for day surgery.

I hope that all goes well for you. Being on your forehead, I would hope that they can take a large enough margin around the lesion. Please let us know how you get on. It is not at all unusual for you to think worst case scenario. Most of us do this initially, but fortunately, this doesn’t often turn out to be the case. Here’s hoping that it will be something straightforward for you. Remember that we are always here for you.

Kind regards,

Jolamine xx

Hi Jolamine,

Sorry to hear you are going through this too. I hope you aren't waiting long for the biopsy and results and they show it's benign. Good luck and please let us know how you get on,

Angie (melanoma patient)

Hi Angie,

I'll certainly keep in touch

I hope that yours turns out to be ok after all this worry.

Kind regards,

Jolamine xx

Hi Jolamine xxxx 

Sorry to read you’re also going through it...this is the last thing you need after everything you’ve been through xx 

Would love to know how you get on. It is true - I myself thought worse case scenario but that wasn’t anything to worry about. 

Got my fingers crossed xxx

Hi Starcatone,

Many thanks for your good wishes. I shall certainly keep in touch and let you know the outcome.

I am so glad that you got good news.

Kind regards,

Jolamine xx

Hello Anna :)

Hope you’re coping with the stress of waiting. I was diagnosed with Stage 1 Melanoma in 2016, for which I had a wide local excision with the results showing clear margins. Since then I have had over 15 moles removed, all dysplastic nevi. I am currently waiting for results on the latest one and I can tell you, it never gets easier... 

Apparently I have Dysplastic Nevi Syndrome, which is more than 50 large dark atypical moles which means my chance of developing Melanoma is higher. 

I wish I could say that the Dermatologist would know, simply by looking at it using the Dermatoscope, but mine said ‘I really don’t think it is malignant, but we’ll take it off just to be sure...’ 

How long have you had the mole? If it’s been there as long as you can remember then the changes are significant. Any scaling or itching could be an indication of abnormal cells. It’s just so important to be vigilant and try to keep a track of changes. 

Try not to worry. As many have already said, Melanoma is so much more treatable these days especially if caught early. 

But I really hope you get the all clear and have been worrying for nothing. Please let us know how you get on. 

Thinking of you

Gwymbo