Skin cancer diagnosis always requires a skin biopsy The procedure that your dermatologist uses to remove the spot is called a skin biopsy. Having a skin biopsy is essential. It's the only way to know whether you have skin cancer. There's no other way to know for sure.
When looking for melanoma, we look for: Asymmetry (spots that aren't even) Spots of different colors or many different colors in one spot. Brown spots that are different than others on your skin, particularly ones with irregular (not normal) borders.
Your doctor may look at your skin to determine whether your skin changes are likely to be skin cancer. Further testing may be needed to confirm that diagnosis. Remove a sample of suspicious skin for testing (skin biopsy). Your doctor may remove the suspicious-looking skin for lab testing.
Melanomas might change in size, shape or colour. Or you might notice other changes such as a mole bleeding, itching or becoming crusty. Normal moles usually stay the same size, shape, and colour.
Regular monitoring allows the dermatologist to identify changes in lesions that look "suspicious." A change may prompt a skin biopsy (removing a sample of the mole for detailed examination under a microscope), which can help determine whether a lesion is non-cancerous (benign), melanoma or another type of skin cancer.
The most common type of melanoma usually appears as a flat or barely raised lesion with irregular edges and different colours. Fifty per cent of these melanomas occur in preexisting moles.
Also called dysplastic moles, atypical moles may be genetic or caused by damage from sun exposure. About 1 in 10 people develop atypical moles during their lifetime. These moles are not cancerous, and need not be removed if they are not changing.
Melanomas are usually brown or black, but some can appear pink, tan, or even white. Some melanomas have areas with different colors, and they might not be round like normal moles. They might grow quickly or even spread into the surrounding skin.
Dysplastic Nevi (Atypical Moles)
Atypical moles may be larger (one-quarter inch across or larger) and more irregular in shape, with notched or fading borders. They may be flat or raised or the surface smooth or rough. They are typically of mixed color, including pink, red, tan, and brown.
Moles that are of a different shape, color, texture or size than other moles may indicate a cancerous growth. In addition, if moles begin to itch, flake, crust or bleed, call a doctor for evaluation. If a mole fits into one of the above categories, it may be a suspicious mole that needs medical attention.
Having a skin biopsy is the only way to know for sure whether you have skin cancer. The tissue that your dermatologist removes will be sent to a lab, where a doctor, such as a dermatopathologist, will examine it under a high-powered microscope.
Can you diagnose without a biopsy? The short answer is no. While imaging and blood draws can show suspicious areas or levels, removing tissue and studying it is the only way to diagnose cancer 100%. Home tests to detect things like colon cancer only look for blood or DNA markers in your stool.
Reading these data inversely, a clinician would realize that with every 50 patients he/she examines without a total body check, 1 skin cancer is missed, and with every 400 patients 1 melanoma is overlooked.
Lumps that could be cancer might be found by imaging tests or felt as lumps during a physical exam, but they still must be sampled and looked at under a microscope to find out what they really are. Not all lumps are cancer. In fact, most tumors are not cancer.
What percentage can we expect? A study published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology suggests around 7% of suspicious mole removal is cancerous. This number drops when accounting for all moles removed, as most are benign (non-cancerous).
What happens next. You will need to go into hospital for another operation to remove more tissue, if you have melanoma. This is called a wide local excision. The aim is to take away any cancerous cells that may have been left in the area around the melanoma.
"While rare, melanoma can sometimes develop in just a few months, rather than several years," says Dr. Jih. "What's more is that, in these cases, it's generally a smaller mole that is rapidly changing, but these changes are harder to spot.
In most cases, a raised mole is nothing to fret about, but sometimes, they may be harmful and pose a risk to your overall health and wellbeing. This is why it's important to know what to look out for when it comes to suspicious moles, including raised or elevated moles and lesions.
Visible signs of precancerous skin
Crustiness or bleeding. Diameter of less than one inch. Discoloration, often appearing brown, pink, gray, red, yellow, or white. Flat or slightly raised.
With stage I melanoma, the tumor's thickness is 1mm or less. This tumor may or may not have ulcerated, and it isn't yet believed to have spread beyond the original site.
Malignant melanoma, which starts out as a mole, is the most dangerous form of skin cancer, killing almost 10,000 people each year. The majority of melanomas are black or brown, but they can be almost any color; skin-colored, pink, red, purple, blue or white. Melanomas are caused mainly by intense UV exposure.
Moles that display any of these signs should be checked by a doctor: A for Asymmetry: One half of a mole or birthmark does not match the other. B for Border: Edges are irregular, ragged, notched or blurred.
Color: Whereas a common mole is one color, a precancerous mole is often a mixture of various colors like brown, black, red, or blue. Diameter: The larger the mole, the more likely it is precancerous. If a mole is larger than five millimeters, it should be evaluated by a doctor.
Redness or new swelling beyond the border of a mole. Color that spreads from the border of a spot into surrounding skin. Itching, pain, or tenderness in an area that doesn't go away or goes away then comes back. Changes in the surface of a mole: oozing, scaliness, bleeding, or the appearance of a lump or bump.