Spot on Face?

Approximately 4-5 weeks ago, I experienced sunburn on my face which led to mild peeling on my forehead, nose, and cheeks.  I noticed a small, concentrated spot of peeling/flaking just below my hairline, which probably measured just below 1cm in diameter.  While the rest of my peeling naturally healed in a couple of days, this spot has remained.

The spot is smooth and pink in color and the skin is not raised.  It has produced mild scaling and flaking over the last few weeks and may have grown very slightly in size.  I have experienced no itching, tenderness, burning, etc.  The spot is on the edge of my hairline, but does not extend into my hairline and only affects the area which was burned.  I have occasionally treated it with Neosporin of all things (it's all I've had around the house) and it responds positively to the cream.  However, if I don't apply the cream for a couple of days then the dryness returns.  

The truth is that this is not very noticeable and I have not been concerned until recently when I began researching skin complications on the internet (skin cancer, psoriasis, etc.).  

As for background - I am 23 years old and have no history of skin problems.  I do not consider myself to be fair skinned and have never had any lingering problems to sun exposure.  

What do you think this could be?  Should I be overly concerned?  Could this be a chronic condition and what should I do to treat this?  Thank you for your help!

[Alan Rockoff, MD]

This doesn't sound at all like skin cancer.  It may be an irritation of some sort, perhaps related to the burn and subsequent peeling.  Beyond that, it's hard to say without seeing it.  I advise you to ignore it for a month or so.  If it persists, show it to a doctor then.  Of course, avoiding burns in the future is a good idea.

Take care.

Dr. Rockoff

[Chels1511]

A related discussion, Spot on my face was started.