If you had a mole examined by a dermatologist

[Liz CA]

Can you tell me what the procedure was? Was the first appointment just a consultation or did the doctor decide to take a biopsy? Can they look at it and tell if it needs to be biopsied or does everything need to be biopsied? 

[Selkie]

My dermatologist looks at my moles and if he thinks any need to be biopsied, he does it right then and there. The one time I had a biopsy come back as mildly abnormal, he had me come back in so he could remove a bit more of the surrounding area.

[almondbutterandjelly]

Any time my dermatologist removes a mole, she sends it to the lab.  Even if it's just cosmetic removal (I am a moley person.  Thanks, genes!)

 

[almondbutterandjelly]

Oh, and for the appointment, you just go in, ask the doctor to look at any concerning moles.  If they are concerned or you want it gone, they will remove it.  They have a little room with a dentist-style chair and they can remove it right away, super quick and easy.  Then they send it off to the lab.  Easy peasy.

[felicity]

They generally can tell and biopsy it at the same appointment. I have been told that it’s shape, colors, size or if it’s different from your other ones.Then you come back if it’s positive for anything where they take the rest of the margins and dealnwith closing the area. 

I happen to have had a spot on my nose biopsied on Wednesday so it’s very much on my mind (nose)  right now. Mine is most likely one of two types of carcinoma. Fun times.

[Liz CA]

Thank you everyone! Sounds like a pretty straight forward process and hopefully it's nothing major.

[Lady Florida.]

I've had it done twice. Both times they did a biopsy right then. Whatever process your doctor follows, I hope it comes back clear.

[gardenmom5]

dh goes in every few years.  he's had a number of pre-skin cancer frozen off.  biopsies have been pretty rare for him.

he took 2ds in as he had a mole being an obstacle to shaving. he got checked over while he was there.   he ended up also having a mole on his back removed and sent to a pathologist.  another was biopsied.  that was his first appointment.   his skin is more stereotype red-head skin than my red-head's .... he was born with a nevus on his leg.

[mmasc]

1 hour ago, Selkie said:

My dermatologist looks at my moles and if he thinks any need to be biopsied, he does it right then and there. The one time I had a biopsy come back as mildly abnormal, he had me come back in so he could remove a bit more of the surrounding area.

This is exactly the way my dermatologist appointments go as well. I’ve seen many different ones and this is usually how it goes. 

[PeachyDoodle]

Yes, mine does the biopsy right then if she thinks it needs it. A couple of times she has looked (she uses some type of magnifying lens thing that looks like what jewelers use to examine diamonds) and said she doesn't see anything concerning, just watch for changes.

[Tap]

I just ask them to remove the entire mole instead of a biopsy. Every year, I pick a few to remove and doctor picks a few to remove due to uneven coloring/size shape etc.  They have almost all been normal.  I have had a dozen or so removed. 

The one that was really concerning, was one that was on my neck near the the thyroid gland. It was really, really different than my other moles and would bleed if something rubbed on it (shirt collar etc).  That one, I did have them do a punch biopsy to confirm that it was Basal Cell and then I had Mohs surgery to remove it. I wanted to make sure it was gone, with the least amount of scarring. 

[EKS]

My dermatologist biopsies anything suspicious.  She tries to remove the whole thing at once, otherwise if it comes back as "funny" she has to do an excision.  (However, if it comes back melanoma, they do an excision no matter what--at least that is my understanding).  She will also biopsy/removal of anything that I'm worried about even if she thinks it's fine.

A biopsy/removal is really nothing.  They give you a shot of anesthetic, which can sting a bit depending on where it is, and then they take the thing off, which feels like nothing.  I've never had a biopsy hurt afterwards.  It heals up in a week or two.

[EKS]

26 minutes ago, Tap said:

The one that was really concerning, was one that was on my neck near the the thyroid gland. It was really, really different than my other moles and would bleed if something rubbed on it (shirt collar etc).  That one, I did have them do a punch biopsy to confirm that it was Basal Cell and then I had Mohs surgery to remove it. I wanted to make sure it was gone, with the least amount of scarring. 

You had a mole that turned out to be BCC?  That's really weird.  All of my BCC spots have been...well...not moles.

[vonfirmath]

5 hours ago, Liz CA said:

Can you tell me what the procedure was? Was the first appointment just a consultation or did the doctor decide to take a biopsy? Can they look at it and tell if it needs to be biopsied or does everything need to be biopsied? 

 

I had moles "examined' by a dermatologist and was VERY unhappy. She spent less than a minute in the room with me glancing at them -- I'm not sure she even saw them out. Then told me they were perfectly normal and to come back in 5 years and walked out before I had a chance to collect myself and ask her if they could be removed anyway.

 

[KrissiK]

I had a melanoma removed 8 years ago. I initially saw my GP for it and she did a punch biopsy,sent it to the lab and then called back a few days later and said it was a melanoma. I have since been seeing a dermatologist who specializes in skin cancer. With the melanoma she took a huge chunk out of my ankle, even though the margins were clean. But she’s an amazing surgeon and you can barely even see the scar now. She takes everything off (a lot of times she’ll say, “well, I can take it off now or we can just wait and see”. I always want it off. They send it to the lab. Only once since that melanoma has anything come back even the slightest bit suspicious, and that one last year was just pre-cancerous. She still did an excision on that one.