melamoma question

I'm 36 years old with dark brown hair, hazel eyes.  I have lots of freckles and many moles.  I burn, but then will tan. If I wear sunscreen I will only tan.  No close family members have had melanoma, my grandmother had skin cancer, but it was not melamoma. I've had 4 moles removed and  so far  2 have come back "melanoctytic nevus with feaures of a dysplastic nevus, margins free."  I was told this was "mild".  Can you please tell me exactly what this means?  Because I've had two come back like this was do I have an increased chance of getting melanoma? No close family members have had melanoma, my grandmother had skin cancer, but it was not melamoma.

Thank you for taking the time to answer my question.

[Alan Rockoff, MD]

The term "dysplastic nevus" is very vague and hard to define.  When "dysplasia" (irregularity) is mild, as judged by an experienced skin pathologist, it mostly means nothing.  Unless your doctor suggested that you come back to have more tissue removed, you can assume that the dysplastic moles you had fell into that category.  Given your skin type, you should be regular about sunscreen use, you should be looked over once a year by a skin doctor, and you should bring any changes you note to the attention of a dermatologist.  However, I would make the same suggestion whether or not you had dysplastic nevi (moles) removed.  The biopsy reports don't change much--anything suspicious should be checked, everything else should be left alone.

Best.

Dr. Rockoff