Hi Dr.,
I am a 25 year old female.
Last July or August, I noticed a dark-colored freckle-like thing on the palm of my hand. It concerned me a bit, but I didn't really worry much about it. I was in the sun a lot around that time (almost every day, with no sunscreen).
I have been looking at it again lately for some reason. I think that it might have grown a bit, but not a lot - I really can't tell for sure though. I also noticed that it is not symmetrical. Whatever it is, it is not elevated, and it is smaller than in the picture, so it is probably about 2 mm or so.
I went to my dermatology nurse practitioner a few days ago, and she didn't seem very concerned. She looked at it under the goggles/light (what do those do?), and told me that I'm fine, and that I should just watch it for growth. She said that these types of things often show up due to hormones and such, but she never told me what it could be.
I took this picture today, and it shows it in so much more detail than in real life. Like I said, it is really about 2 mm or so in size, so it's difficult to see the details.
I've had it for about 9 months or so since I first noticed it. Neither of my parents have ever had skin cancer, and they are out in the sun working a lot, without sunscreen. I have blue eyes, but I tan easily and rarely burn. I only have 3 or 4 moles on my body, and they are all small, round, and a lighter brown, and I've had them for as long as I can remember.
This weird thing is located kind of on a vein under my skin, or maybe just right to the side of it. I'm not sure if that's relevant or not.
Here is the pic: http://tinypic.com/view.php?pic=otollf&s=7
What do you think? Should I be concerned? What could this be besides melanoma?
I am always out in the sun, because it makes my depression better. I have been going to the tanning bed a lot over the past few months, but before that, I had only been there maybe 10-15 times about 8 years ago.
Thank you so much for your help.