Small toenail discoloration

I was wearing a dark nail polish for a while, and didn't notice the mark until I had taken off the polish.  When I looked at my big toe, there was a strange discoloration starting from my cuticle.  It's probably takes up about 1/4 inch of my nail bed. It kind of looks like a streak but not sure...  The color is the even stranger part because it's almost like a purplish brown??  It doesn't hurt, it's just there, but it's worrying me because I've been looking all over the internet for something, but have found nothing besides cancer and fungal infections.  Help please!

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,
From the symptoms the first possibility to be ruled out is of a nail injury. In absence of a nail injury, blackish purple discoloration of nail can be due to fungal infection and less likely to be a melanoma.

It is very difficult to precisely confirm a diagnosis without examination and investigations and the answer is based on the medical information provided. For exact diagnosis, you are requested to consult your dermatologist. I sincerely hope that helps. Take care and please do keep me posted on how you are doing.