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Potential Skin Cancer On Scalp…What do I expect?

Tom1878
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Hi all, I hope use are all well.

I am writing this post for some guidance & reassurance and hopefully get somebody's input who has had the same experience. A few weeks ago I noticed my mole on my right side of my scalp which I've had for life had changed in smoothness and had a weird colour. At the same time of discovering that I noticed a mole on the back of my scalp which I knew I had but it was never at a size to realise it was there had grown quite a lot I could see it. So straight away I rang the GP. 
 

So the next day I was on the phone to my GP and he straight away seen photos and said we are putting you on a 2 week referral for you to go see a specialist (dermatologist) so now I have my appointment on the 30th of June. Now at first I was like it probably won't be serious but recently I have seen more noticeable changes. What do I expect from this appointment. I'm guessing a biopsy but could they remove it all together.

Any input would be more than appreciated.

Thanks. Tom, 21.

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    Hi Tom ,

    A few years back I went for a referral because I had moles on my toes they took photographs of them to keep an eye on them. They then looked at all my other moles and noticed one I had for years they weren't happy with. They removed it on the day and stitched me up .

     

    when I returned for results they said that the cells were changing but weren't cancerous at the time. If I have any more changes to the ones on my toes I have to go back. 
     

    they were very thorough and helpful. I hope your ok keep your chin up!

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    Hi Tom,

    It's good that you have got a swift appointment - less time to worry! 

    At the appointment the dermatologist will check your moles, probably with a dermascope which shows any unusual changes in the cell structure. If they think either or both need removing it probably won't be on that day. This is only done if they have the time, facilities and dependent on how many they are removing and what location of the body they are on. Especially during Covid they have less theatre space and manpower so don't be surprised if you have to wait a couple of weeks for it/them removing if it's necessary.

    When they remove a mole they remove it completely by doing an excision with a safe margin of skin around it & then they stitch it up. If the mole is malignant, the depth (thickness) will depend on if any further surgery is needed. A melanoma in-situ is one where it sits on the top of the skin & hasn't penetrated into the skin. If it's one of these and they have taken a large enough margin of tissue already, you won't require any further surgery. However, if they haven't removed enough margin or the melanoma is deeper, a Wide Local Excision is then needed and at the moment, these are averaging a 4 week wait after the biopsy results are given to the patient. 

    All that being said, 75% of patients referred to dermatology do not get a diagnosis of melanoma so the odds that yours are OK are high, especially as you are young. Some moles can be dysplastic (atypical) like s3xytink had - they look dodgy & need removing for diagnosis but they are benign and, depending on how many & how quickly the cells are changing, they can become malignant in the future. So your mole(s) could possibly be dysplastic.

    I hope this helps. Good luck next week and please let us know how you get on,

    Angie (Stage 3 melanoma patient since 2009)

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