Is this a Wart or a Mole?

[brunnen-g]

I had sex with a girl about 5 months ago and used a condom.  Afterward, about 4 days later I noticed a small flesh colored bump/pimple.  It was perfectly round but really small and only one was present, you would have to be looking for it to see it.  I went to two doctors, my primary and a clinic doctor to ask them if this could be some kind of HPV or was it something else.  They both said, "this doesn't look like much, I wouldn't worry about it".  Well now its grown in size and seems to feel somewhat sore or irritated and it's changed colors to a more of a redish color from the initial more flesh color.  You can definitely notice it now without having to look for it.  I'm really paranoid about stuff like this.  Is this sexually related?  I've never had anything like this on or near my groin area before.  I don't want to give anybody anything and this is in a area where the condom doesn't roll all the way over and stay there during sex(base of the penis kind of on the pelvic wall when flacid).  I feel trapped and depressed.

Questions:  Wart or Mole?  Is it sexually trasmitted?  Skin cancer( probably not but had to ask )?  What can I do to get rid of this with the least amount of scarring?

Thank you for your time doctor.

[Alan Rockoff, MD]

It doesn't sound like a wart.  You've seen two doctors who don't think it's a wart.  So it seems reasonable to think that it's not a wart.  Therefore, you have nothing to feel trapped and depressed about.  There are many non-wart things that can appear on the penis--cysts, for example--that look like what you've described.  Get another opinion from an STD clinic or dermatologist if you want to, but if you hear the same thing again, I think you should accept the good news and move on.

Take care.

Dr. Rockoff

[Englishman]

You need to go and see a doctor to put your mind at ease. Even if it is a wart, it was not from the sexual encounter you describe (warts don't show up 4 days after sex!). It sounds like a sebaceous cyst to me, but I am not a doctor.

[brunnen-g]

Well I just got back from the dermatologist today and it's not a wart or a mole or a sebaceous cyst.  It's Molluscum Contagiosum and it can be sexually transmitted.  The doctor actually found one really small one that I missed and he cored both of them with a burning lance/needle.  The one that was inflamed hurt like hell but it didn't bleed at least.  Hopefully I won't have to go back for further treatment.

Does anybody know how easy it is to transmit this sexually b/c I did have sex with a girl before I got this treated, mainly because everybody was telling me not to WORRY because it was probably nothing.  I'm on pins and needles, I really hope I didn't pass this along.

[Englishman]

It is debateable whether it is an STD or not. I'm almost convinced I got mine from shaving my pubic area and wiping it with an old wet towl (a bad idea!). Maybe that was a trigger, but it was 8 months since I last had sex before that!

I was told to not bother telling anyone I had molluscum because most adults are immune anyway, and even if they are not, it is a self-limiting, harmless disease. I was told this by a GUM specialist with 5+ years experience - please note that this is controversial though.

Either way, if it is an STD, it is the most mildest viral STD you can get. One more bonus - once you clear it, you will be immune for life.

Best of luck.

[brunnen-g]

Thanks for the response englishman.  Agree with what you say.  The doctor said it COULD be sexually transmitted but that there are other ways you could get this.  And he said the incubation period seems to be all over the place, 1-6 weeks to 6-12 months.  I guess it just depends on the person's immune system?

Cheers