re previos question about a picked off mole / freckle

[bexarooney]

hello you previous answered me a question about a freckle/flat mole i have picked off my skin. i was very worried i could have picked away a cancer (i have very bad health anxiety) anyway i have been for a skin screening and had the mark or scar that is left there now looked at through a special camera and a dermascope and the derm said that even if it was a cancer and i had picked it off there would still be evidence in the tissue left to be able to tell if it was a melenoma in the way that it heals and it would not just be like normal skin. they said it is just normal skin no cancer and to stop picking..... of course i am questioning this!!!!! can you really tell by the type of skin that has healed if it was a melenoma??? i no a dermatologist told me this so it must be true but i just want a bit of reassurance..thankyou for your time .. rebecca

[bexarooney]

So if a dermascope shows no hint what so ever, and the skin has healed to normal skin, is there need for a biopsy if my derm doesn't feel nessesary??

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,
It is very difficult to confirm the diagnosis of a melanoma by a naked eye examination but a dermascope can give a hint and a biopsy skin is one of the most confirmatory tests.
I hope it helps. Take care and regards.

[bexarooney]

Thankyou , 3 dermatologist have examined the scar with a dermascope and imaging camera and say they would be able to tell if it was a melenoma?? Is this untrue then??? Thanks

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,
Just by looking at the skin we cannot judge whether it was a melanoma. Sometimes when a normal mole is shaved off, melanocytes left behind in the wound regrow in an abnormal pattern. This is accompanied by scarring, inflammation, and blood vessel changes and this both the clinical and histologic impression of a melanoma.

To confirm the diagnosis, a biopsy of the skin and the surrounding skin needs to be done.
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.

[bexarooney]

does no body have an answer is that why i am not getting a response?? i have had good advice from here in the past

[bexarooney]

anyone at all????

[bexarooney]

Anyone please really worried

[bexarooney]

anybody??

[bexarooney]

oh i picked it off about 2 mths ago , it healed within a week