Atypical moles and healthy anxiety

[Adriatico]

Hello everyone. I'm new here and I found this forum to be the best one which deals with health anxiety.
Recently I've been through a lot of anxiety due to two very scary looking moles. Both of them showed ABCD signs of melanoma and I was pretty sure that they were at least highly atypical moles. They were about 6 mm in diameter, very asymmetrical, had multiple colors (at least 3) and ragged/notched border. First one showed up when I was 21/22 yo (I'm 28 now) and second one probably during high school. I consulted my dermatologist and he examined both of them. Regarding the first mole he said that it looked normal through dermatoscope and no need to worry. However, he said that second mole was highly suspicious and possibly even melanoma so he recommended to remove it and send it for a biopsy. Since then I was really anxious and scared even though he said that even if it was melanoma, we caught it very early. Today, the pathology report came back as benign compound nevus with no signs of atypia whatsoever. So, I have a couple of questions.

1) Has anyone of you had similar experience (had very scary looking mole which turned out completely benign by pathology report)? Is it really possible for a normal mole to clinically look so abnormal? Or, with regards to the first mole, is it common for a mole to look abnormal upon eye examination only to be revealed as normal through a dermatoscope? Right know I'm kinda confused about which moles to look for.

2) How did you deal with the anxiety if you had any, especially while you waited for a pathology report? I need some tips just in case I have to deal with this again sometimes in the future.

Thank you in advance and sorry for grammar mistakes

[utrocket09]

Hello everyone. I'm new here and I found this forum to be the best one which deals with health anxiety.
Recently I've been through a lot of anxiety due to two very scary looking moles. Both of them showed ABCD signs of melanoma and I was pretty sure that they were at least highly atypical moles. They were about 6 mm in diameter, very asymmetrical, had multiple colors (at least 3) and ragged/notched border. First one showed up when I was 21/22 yo (I'm 28 now) and second one probably during high school. I consulted my dermatologist and he examined both of them. Regarding the first mole he said that it looked normal through dermatoscope and no need to worry. However, he said that second mole was highly suspicious and possibly even melanoma so he recommended to remove it and send it for a biopsy. Since then I was really anxious and scared even though he said that even if it was melanoma, we caught it very early. Today, the pathology report came back as benign compound nevus with no signs of atypia whatsoever. So, I have a couple of questions.

1) Has anyone of you had similar experience (had very scary looking mole which turned out completely benign by pathology report)? Is it really possible for a normal mole to clinically look so abnormal? Or, with regards to the first mole, is it common for a mole to look abnormal upon eye examination only to be revealed as normal through a dermatoscope? Right know I'm kinda confused about which moles to look for.

2) How did you deal with the anxiety if you had any, especially while you waited for a pathology report? I need some tips just in case I have to deal with this again sometimes in the future.

Thank you in advance and sorry for grammar mistakes

Yes. My husband has had 20 moles biopsied. 8 of them are atypical which means nothing just scary looking mole. For me, he gets moles removed every year so we are used it.

[KK77]

I think you dealt with the situation as best you could and I'm pleased biopsy result came back as benign.

This also illustrates how a mole can look very suspicious to the eye yet until it's examined you simply cannot speculate.

[Adriatico]

Yes. My husband has had 20 moles biopsied. 8 of them are atypical which means nothing just scary looking mole. For me, he gets moles removed every year so we are used it.

All those 20 were suspicious looking moles?

[bin tenn]

I also think you took the right approach in being proactive. Great for you! I'm glad everything checked out well. Yes, it's definitely possible (and seemingly not very unusual) for moles to appear abnormal/suspicious, only to be benign after further evaluation/biopsy. For some people, "abnormal" moles are their "normal" - it depends on the person.

That's not to say that any future discoveries shouldn't be brought to a dermatologist's attention. Sure they should be. But I'd say chances are they'll still be benign.

[Adriatico]

I also think you took the right approach in being proactive. Great for you! I'm glad everything checked out well. Yes, it's definitely possible (and seemingly not very unusual) for moles to appear abnormal/suspicious, only to be benign after further evaluation/biopsy. For some people, "abnormal" moles are their "normal" - it depends on the person.

That's not to say that any future discoveries shouldn't be brought to a dermatologist's attention. Sure they should be. But I'd say chances are they'll still be benign.

Yeah, I think that I'm one of those people whose moles look abnormal on the first sight. I have only about 20 moles, with most of them 2-3 mm in diameter and only 2 larger than 5 mm, but almost each one of them is different from another. So I think that this "ugly duckling sign" just doesn't work for me. Of course I will keep tracking changes and check out everything suspicious. Thank you for reply

[utrocket09]

All those 20 were suspicious looking moles?

No. 8 out of 20. They varied between mild atypical and moderate atypical. Again just means an unisual mole and nothing more

[Adriatico]

No. 8 out of 20. They varied between mild atypical and moderate atypical. Again just means an unisual mole and nothing more

Well, mine was very suspicious on dermatoscope examination and turned out to be completely benign compound naevus (not atypical mole) by pathology... that's why I'm confused.

I read that atypical moles are considered to be precancerous lesions even though they rarely progress to melanoma (only about 1 in 10.000).

[utrocket09]

Well, mine was very suspicious on dermatoscope examination and turned out to be completely benign compound naevus (not atypical mole) by pathology... that's why I'm confused.

I read that atypical moles are considered to be precancerous lessons even though they rarely progress to melanoma (only about 1 in 10.000).

They are not precancerous. They are just unusual moles. Meaning that look suspicious but are not. Like I said my husband has several that are atypical. Means nothing

[Double_Rainbow]

Well, mine was very suspicious on dermatoscope examination and turned out to be completely benign compound naevus (not atypical mole) by pathology... that's why I'm confused.
Don't be confused. You have undeniable proof that it is not worrisome, it is just a normal mole. The looks of it are irrelevant at this point. Keep in mind too that it might come back, and if it does, it may end up looking even worse than it used to, due to being on a scar tissue. Don't get alarmed, it is totally normal.


I read that atypical moles are considered to be precancerous lesions even though they rarely progress to melanoma (only about 1 in 10.000).
The myth of atypical moles being precancerous has been debunked a long time ago. Maybe if they are severely atypical, but even in that case the risk is very low. But why do you ask about this? Your mole was benign so no need to even let your mind go that route.

[ErinKC]

I have so many moles an several different types (meaning, some that are light brown, perfectly round, small, some that are dark and flat, some that are bumpy and multicolored, some that are asymmetrical and flat, asymmetrical and lumpy, etc...)

The ABCD guide is just that - a guide. It's not a perfect diagnostic tool, so there are plenty of times that totally benign moles may fit one or more of the criteria.

My dermatologist once told me that melanoma is so rare that one of the best ways to rule it out is to find even one other mole on your body that looks similar. It's so rare to have melanoma that it's virtually unheard of to have two different instances of it on your body at the same time. So if I ever get nervous about a weird looking mole, I usually spend a few minutes looking and can find another one that looks similar.

[BrightPhoenix]

I had one mole-like thinking looked at by my dermatologist and he wasn't worried - didn't get it biopsied and he pointed out that it's most likely a skin pore that got clogged because hair was growing out of it.

I trust this dermatologist because he's very patient, confident, kind, and highly recommended by everyone.

It's good that you were vigilant about it though. As your derm pointed out, if you catch it early it's very treatable.

Edit: Oh and if you're a beachgoer or outside a lot (I'm not), wear sunscreen!

[Adriatico]

I have so many moles an several different types (meaning, some that are light brown, perfectly round, small, some that are dark and flat, some that are bumpy and multicolored, some that are asymmetrical and flat, asymmetrical and lumpy, etc...)

The ABCD guide is just that - a guide. It's not a perfect diagnostic tool, so there are plenty of times that totally benign moles may fit one or more of the criteria.

My dermatologist once told me that melanoma is so rare that one of the best ways to rule it out is to find even one other mole on your body that looks similar. It's so rare to have melanoma that it's virtually unheard of to have two different instances of it on your body at the same time. So if I ever get nervous about a weird looking mole, I usually spend a few minutes looking and can find another one that looks similar.

I have an average number of moles - only about 20 larger than 1 mm and most are 3 mm or smaller, so for me it's hard to find 2 moles which look similar to one another. I had only 2 larger than 5 mm and one was removed.

---------- Post added at 23:56 ---------- Previous post was at 23:53 ----------


I had one mole-like thinking looked at by my dermatologist and he wasn't worried - didn't get it biopsied and he pointed out that it's most likely a skin pore that got clogged because hair was growing out of it.

I trust this dermatologist because he's very patient, confident, kind, and highly recommended by everyone.

It's good that you were vigilant about it though. As your derm pointed out, if you catch it early it's very treatable.

Edit: Oh and if you're a beachgoer or outside a lot (I'm not), wear sunscreen!

I live on the Mediterranean which is really sunny. As a kid I spent a lot of time under the sun. I used sun sunscreen when I was a child, however not so any more when I grew up. Most of the time I didn't go out before 4pm though and I still don't.

[ErinKC]

I have an average number of moles - only about 20 larger than 1 mm and most are 3 mm or smaller, so for me it's hard to find 2 moles which look similar to one another. I had only 2 larger than 5 mm and one was removed.

Then you're even less likely to get melanoma! Moles are a tough one because it's impossible not to notice them. But with a negative biopsy I'd not be worried anymore. Every now and then I notice something that worries me (like once a year or less) so I don't even hesitate to make an appointment and check it out. It sounds like that's what you did and you got it handled.

[Doug90]

I have quite a few "unusual" or atypical moles but what my derm told me was "If you have alot of unusual moles, then they aren't unusual at all" or something to that effect, basically what he was saying was its relative to the person whether or not a mole is unusual.

If someone has normally spotless skin, then any kind of moles are unusual. But if a person has lots of moles then a mole would really have to look distinct to be unusual.