Hi Sophie,

I know how anxious you must be, being referred & it happening so quickly. Your GP has been great in dealing with you so promptly & the 2 week referral is standard for a mole that looks suspicious. Your referral appointment is also happening slightly quicker than usual because only referrals are being seen face to face at the moment - regular check up appointments for melanoma patients are being done over the phone because of Covid, so there is more time for the dermatologist to see new referrals.

You have been given good advice as to what may happen if the dermatologist thinks the mole needs removing for a biopsy. If it needs removing, it's usually done at a different appointment & it's done as a day surgery patient. Can I just add that 75% of people referred to dermatology are given a clean bill of health, either at the referral appointment or after biopsy results are received. A couple of recent posts on this forum have been from people in your position & their biopsies have come back clear, so the odds are in your favour.

If it should turn out to be melanoma it will depend on how deep the melanoma has grown as to what treatment happens next. If early stage, like SDG3, only routine check ups will be necessary for a short period of time. If later stage, further surgery & drug treatment may be necessary, but that only occurs in a small number of new referrals.

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

Angie (Stage 3 melanoma patient) 

Thankyou SDG3 and AngieT for your thoughtful replies - I am sorry to hear of both of your diagnoses. 

I think I am a bit in shock as my partner (rightly or wrongly) had tried to convince me it was nothing so I attended the appointment perhaps a bit naive as to what the outcome of it would be. I’m still not really sure he entirely understands the possible severity of this. I’m also presuming he can’t come with me to the appointment due to COVID restrictions. 

Do you know if they’ll take a look at other moles? I don’t have many which is partly why I have the referral as the one on my shoulder looks completely out of place. Do they also tell you there and then what they suspect it is?

Thankyou both for taking the time to reply x

Hi Sophie,

That is probably for your results, you will probably find that the results are being done a bit quicker at the moment as not so busy and I attended in person, all appointments good or bad.

Fingers crossed for a good result..

Simon

Hi Sophie,

It's normal practice to give results face to face whether they are good or bad. This is because they like to check the surgical wound and perhaps show patients how to check their other moles. So don't panic and hopefully all will be well,

Angie

Hi both, 

Thankyou so much for your replies. 

Just a week to wait now. Do you know what to expect at the appointment?? I’m getting a bit more nervous now about the results. Do they give you your results and then that’s just kind of it, depending on if they’re positive or negative? 

Thanks so much both for all your support,

Sophie 

Hi Sophie 

I'm 28 and in a similar position to you have been called back to have my mole removed and tested. So this thread has been very helpful for me too thanks for starting it - and thanks to everyone else providing insights!

They took photos of mine on the 13th may and have been told my appointment for removal is 11th June so not very fast moving which isn't helping with my nerves.

Hope your follow up appointment goes well - let us know how you get on.

Holly xx

Hi Sophie,

What happens at the appointment will depend on what the biopsy results showed. If it was benign, they will discharge you & may show you how to check your moles in the future. If it's a dysplastic (atypical) mole (pre-cancerous) they may want to remove extra tissue from around it to ensure they have got it all. They will also check any other moles - those with dysplastic moles tend to have a lot of moles. You may also be monitored through regular check ups - usually for a year or two.

If the results shows melanoma, they will arrange for you to attend a further appointment for a Wide Local Excision - this is where they remove a wider margin around the affected area so they can be sure they have 'mopped up' any stray cancer cells. Also, dependant on the depth of the melanoma, they may offer a Sentinel Lymph Node biopsy which will be explained in full at your appointment. This is only offered if the melanoma is more than 8mm in depth & it's done at the same time as the WLE. You will also have regular check ups for between a year & 5 years (depending on the Stage which is ascertained from the depth). 

Hopefully everything will come back clear. Crossing fingers for you,

Angie

Hi everyone, 

Thankyou so much for all of your amazing support. 

The hospital phoned me today to let me know everything is benign! I am so so relieved and I don’t need to attend in person tomorrow.

Thankyou so much again for the kindness and care you’ve shown me. It has been such a help and comfort.

Take care everyone, 

Sophie xxx

Hi Sophie, 

I just wanted to write under your forum for some advice myself. I have literally went through almost the same as yourself back in April. I had a mole on my right breast which I noticed changes and my GP red flagged it to the dermatologist at my local hospital and I was seen within 2weeks. They checked the mole and others on my body using a hand held microscope device and she said she didn't think it was anything to worry about but would like to do a biopsy just to make sure. I had my biopsy done on the 4th May 2020.. the only difference is I was told I would have to wait 12weeks on my results due to covid 19 and it's only been 4 weeks since and my nerves are shattered waiting.. I noticed you got a response sooner. I live in n.ireland and wondered if it's different wait times depending on where you live? 
 

I really hope you have a positive outcome x 

Hi Lauren, 

I am sorry to hear you are experiencing this. 

I live in the South East of England. To me the services didn’t seem at all affected by COVID other then having the results over the phone. I was seen within  week and had the mole removed on the same day as the appointment. I found out today after 3 weeks of waiting that my results were benign thankfully. My consultant said it wasn’t the same as a biopsy as they removed the whole mole but they did test it. 

I am surprised the wait is 3 months - did you have the biopsy on the same day as your appointment?

Good luck - there will be people on this thread who definitely know more about this then I do. This forum had been such a great help xxx

I'm so very happy to hear your results were benign. Take care and get your life back to normal now xx

Hi Lauren,

I'm really sorry that you are going through all this and the wait for results are taking so long.

I know several melanoma patients in Northern Ireland and sadly the waiting times are very long. This is due to the Health Service being impacted by problems within the Government. 

I really hope you aren't left waiting that long and that the situation improves within your health service.

Angie (melanoma patient)

Hi Lauren,

I'm really sorry that you are going through all this and the wait for results are taking so long.

I know several melanoma patients in Northern Ireland and sadly the waiting times are very long. This is due to the Health Service being impacted by problems within the Government. 

I really hope you aren't left waiting that long and that the situation improves within your health service.

Angie (melanoma patient)

Hi Angie, 

yes unfortunately I believe this is the case for us in N.ireland. When I first went to the GP they sent an urgent referral and told me I would be seen within two weeks.. four weeks passed and I heard nothing so I rang the appointments line at the hospital and they told me I would have to wait a year to be seen and would only be seen sooner if my GP red flagged by case. Luckily my GP did and I was seen within two weeks back in April.

When I spoke to the consultant they told me I would need the mole removed and tested and I would have to wait between 6-9months for this to happen due to covid 19 but to try not to worry (easier said than done). Two days later I got a phone call from the hospital to ask if I could be down within the hour to have the mole removed and of course I jumped in the car and went straight down.

When they removed the mole at the start of May I asked when I should have the results and they just said it will probably be 12weeks due to covid19. It's been 4weeks and I'm not even sure if I should be expecting a phone call or a letter for my results so I'm just a ball of nerves thinking the worst. But I will keep use informed as soon as I find out and wish you all the very best x x 

Hello everyone, 

This post has been very helpful for me. I am 25 and my boyfriend noticed a new mole on my shoulder/back last Sunday ( 30th August). I sent images to my GP that day and they asked me to give them a call. I called them on Tuesday and went through a series of questions. They told me they would refer me to the dermatologist within 2 weeks. The dermatologist called me on the Friday morning and told me I have an appointment on the following Tuesday (today).

I have started to get a little nervous now as they got me in so quickly and called me a few times on the Friday. I am trying not to worry myself too much, but I am a worrier by nature. It was great to read that other people, like Sophie, were going through the same thoughts and feelings that I am. 

My appointment is in less than 2 hours. Wish me luck! 

Hi Bella 

My results came back as clear too but it has made me think that urgency to get you in doesn't always correlate with the outcome! Even though at the time I didn't think that way at all...!

Hope it goes well! Xx

P.s so glad to hear your results were clear Sophie! I'd been following this thread but hadn't any notifications but just seen the updates. 

Hello again everyone,

My appointment was yesterday and I'm so relieved that it is over. All the staff at the hospital were wonderful.

The doctor didn't seem to think it was cancerous but took images and removed it just in case. I had the removal done there and then and now I'm just waiting for the results. 

Thanks for all your kind words 

Good luck Bella. Hopefully you won't be waiting long for the results and they come back fine xx