View Full Version : Fear of melanoma
Hi! I was doing fine for months and now back at it again.
I never thought about melanoma and never checked my moles... I have pretty tan skin and black hair and eyes... I have very little moles. I've had this particular big mole on my left hip... Not so big in diameter but really elevated... I never gave it a second look, it was always there... 4 days ago I looked at it maybe for the first time in my life and it seems so ugly... I don't know how to explain it... I started to move it around to look better and now it hurts like crazy but I can't help myself and I continue to touch it! I took an appointment with a dermatologist but I'm utterly convinced it is cancer this time... Is there someone who knows about moles and can reassure me? Thanks!
If it's always been there and it hasn't changed it's not melanoma.
Problem is I don't know if it has changed... Never really looked at it😔
Problem is I don't know if it has changed... Never really looked at it😔
All the things you say in your first post point to the fact that you're not in a high risk group for melanoma. Also, even if you were, melanoma is way more rare than we give it credit for. Almost certainly you've always had this mole and just suddenly your health anxiety made you see it in a different way. I have SO many moles - way more than 50, which is the threshold for being "higher risk" for skin cancer. Every now and then my mind will play tricks on me and I'll notice once I've had for ages and get worried. So, I get you.
But, there is very, very, very little chance anything is wrong with this mole. I started to see a dermatologist annually for a full skin check and it helps me to not worry about my skin throughout the year. If something truly new pops up I'll go in to see the nurse practitioner, maybe once a year or so. But, since establishing the regular checks it generally keeps my mind at ease.
Hi! I never checked my moles because I never feared melanoma... I'm phototype four (my grand grandfather was black) and I have 15 moles in all my body... I never sunbathe I always stay away from the sun and my skin never burns... This mole I have was always there... It is perfectly symmetrical and has one color (light brown) it was always elevated... Problem is I don't remember if it was So elevated before😱😱
However, what you do know is that you suffer from health anxiety. What does this tell you?
That maybe I'm just obsessing over it... I know😅my rational part says it too
Nothing about the way you described this mole sounds like melanoma whatsoever.
Ok... So I found a photo of me when I was 12 (so 12 years ago) and I was at the beach and the mole was visible and it was way SMALLER back then😱 don't know what to think now, I'm really scared... I was just a kid back then so is it possible that it just kept growing with me?
Yes, absolutely. Of course it's grown with the rest of you.
I'm literally paralized with fear... I can't sleep at night and keep imagining myself in a coffin soon! I'm sure this time is really cancer and I'll die from it! I'm really scared this time and don't know what to do😨
Are you seeing anybody for your anxiety?
Yeah I go to therapy once every two weeks..
It goes better and I feel better but every now and then I get anxious about my body... I have a dermatology appointment in July (😨😨😨) but I can't wait so long!
I promise, you'll be fine.
I can't wait any longer! I'm thinking about going to the ER... I can't sleep at night, I can't eat... I'm crying all day😨
You have bigger problems than a mole, Kiko, this is no way to live.
I won't post anymore on this forum. Nobody seems to care and it seems I'm just talking to myself here and making myself a foolish with everyone... Good bye
Ok, I'll try again... I know I told I wouldn't post anymore but now I'm alone and can't talk to anyone right now so I have to vent...
My mole has definitely changed, maybe not so much in size but in shape... It us more elevated, more "fat"
I'm going to my dermatologist appointment tomorrow and I feel like I'm going to walk to my execution
I tried to talk with my parents and they believe I'm making it up and it is just my anxiety, but it isn't!
Now I'm alone with my cat crying because I just know I won't see him growing up!
I can't find nothing online like the mole I have... It is not flat but really raised, like a little ball of brown fat attached to my skin, just one color and symmetric... Problem is it DID change over time!
If someone, please, anyone knows something about melanoma please help me!
Thanks and sorry...
Problem is, no one here is medically trained nor can we tell by a picture. There were some perfectly logical explanations and reassurance earlier in the thread. Perhaps revisit them. You'll see your derm tomorrow so.... Personally, based on the previous posts, I wouldn't be worried to the point of crying with my cat ;)
Positive thoughts
Thank you🤭I was waiting for your post, they always make me smile :) can you please hold the "told you so" until tomorrow, please? That would be really reassuring😊
utrocket09
02-06-19, 14:03
Ok, I'll try again... I know I told I wouldn't post anymore but now I'm alone and can't talk to anyone right now so I have to vent...
My mole has definitely changed, maybe not so much in size but in shape... It us more elevated, more "fat"
I'm going to my dermatologist appointment tomorrow and I feel like I'm going to walk to my execution
I tried to talk with my parents and they believe I'm making it up and it is just my anxiety, but it isn't!
Now I'm alone with my cat crying because I just know I won't see him growing up!
I can't find nothing online like the mole I have... It is not flat but really raised, like a little ball of brown fat attached to my skin, just one color and symmetric... Problem is it DID change over time!
If someone, please, anyone knows something about melanoma please help me!
Thanks and sorry...
My husband had a mole that changed dramatically within weeks. We went to a dematologist whom told us directly he was not sure if it was cancer. Guess what...removed and was not cancer. My point being, you can have changing moles and there be no cancer. My husband has since had 18 more moles removed to check to ensure they are not cancerous and no cancer so far.
roseanxiety
02-06-19, 15:07
Could it be seborrheic keratosis? From you r description, it sounds like it. I have a few of those. A dermatologist will be able to tell you for sure.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I don't know... Only thing I know is I have had it from the day I was born and it was always raised on the skin! I can't post a photo but it seems like a mulberry on my skin... It is oval and it seems formed from little lumps... It seems a ball of fat but it is brown like a mole... Don't know but I'm scared.
I touched and pulled at it so much now my entire hip hurts like hell and I'm convinced that pain is a melanoma symptom😭
roseanxiety
02-06-19, 15:21
I don’t think pain is a symptom.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I don’t think pain is a symptom.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I don't know really😭
My appointment is this afternoon and all I'm hoping for is for it to be at least low grade melanoma. Because I just know it is cancer...
roseanxiety
03-06-19, 08:50
No it isn’t. It’s highly unlikely. Good Luck.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
My appointment is this afternoon and all I'm hoping for is for it to be at least low grade melanoma. Because I just know it is cancer...
Nobody knows for certain that they have cancer until they've seen a specialist. Please try to stop obsessing? You'll only spiral further and make yourself unhappier.
So... I've been to the dermatologist and my mole is perfectly normal BUT I have another mole (on my right nipple🤭a Sutton mole) that I have to keep monitored because it's "moving" so I have to come back in December... But I can relax now🤗
So... I've been to the dermatologist and my mole is perfectly normal
Courtesy of your friendly neighborhood "Told Ya So Gang" ;)
https://media.giphy.com/media/9M3aVeUISfFuGsiWVB/giphy.gif
On standby for the next one...
Positive thoughts
Courtesy of your friendly neighborhood "Told Ya So Gang" ;)
https://media.giphy.com/media/9M3aVeUISfFuGsiWVB/giphy.gif
On standby for the next one...
Positive thoughts
Thank you! I was waiting for it🤗🤗
TYS Status: Issued
Fish, please send 100 more TYSs via USPS :shades:
TYS Status: Issued
Fish, please send 100 more TYSs via USPS :shades:
On the way KK!
Positive thoughts
So... It is almost three weeks from the appointment and my mole still hurts... I don't know what to do I'm really scared
After almost three months my mole still hurts... It has lessen but it is still there and now I'm panicking and really obsessing over it. I tried to control the urge to come back to the doctor but I think I will go back. I'm googling stories of misdiagnoses (of course) and I can't sleep at night
So (if someone is still reading this and cares) yesterday evening my mole peeled.
So I made an appointment with another dermatologist to have it checked. I'll go on Tuesday.
I don't have money for this but I'm too scared not to go, so is not a choice...
Khrissikos
11-08-19, 03:00
Hey Kiko
I have had several moles like the ones you described, very raised. Not cute at all. I had two removed on my head but only because my GP worried they could get infected. They were huge, like a Canadian 2$ coin (google it since I see you’re in Italy 😊). I also had them my whole life, & yes they did increase in size as I got older. Before the removal, I accidentally knocked one while brushing my hair, & I’m not kidding it was sore for about 3 months.
Anyway, as you probably predicted, they were removed, biopsied & completely benign.
I also knew two people who had melanoma (side note: both survived) & their moles were REALLY off. They almost looked like bruises.
If you’ve been touching it, its normal it hurts. Also pain is not a symptom of melanoma.
Don’t worry, dermatologists see these things all day long! You’ll be fine :)
Thank you for sharing your story! It really helped me :)
I cancelled my appointment and took one with my first dermatologist to have my mole removed in September. He continues to say it is benign and the pain could be maybe my anxiety (because if he touches my mole it doesn't hurt at all)
I'm calmer now and I hope I can get rid of it ASAP
Really hard not to Google right now!
Totally convinced I have nodular melanoma but trying to distract myself.
I'm really angry because I planned to use those money to go to a swimming course (I love swimming and it helped me with my depression years ago) but now I have to use them for another dermatologist appointment... Health anxiety... How I hate you!! 😭😠😠
Hello! Hope you're having great holidays!
In the last months everything changed for me. I started a new job (I work with children)
Everything was fine, I didn't have time to worry and Google anymore and I was so happy... Until Monday (my first vacation day... What a coincidence🤔)
If you remember I had to come back to my dermatologist after 6 months, but I can't have my dermatologist check up before January 15th.
I booked my appointment and was fine, no anxiety at all
Monday I looked at myself in the mirror and something was off. The mole I have to check is on my right nipple, but I also have a mole between my breast.
It never catched my attention because it was flat and brown, perfectly normal.
Now it is raised and smaller and it is starting to fade away... It is almost pink.
In a fit of fear and anxiety, I started scratching it so bad it started to bleed. It stopped seconds after, but it still burns like a wound.
I think it is really melanoma this time. I had a terrible Christmas 😔
Can someone reassure me? This mole is simmetrica and has regular border and just one color... But it is smaller, lighter and raised. I'm terrified!
This mole is simmetrica and has regular border and just one color... But it is smaller, lighter and raised. I'm terrified!
That describes a normal mole so? :shrug:
Positive thoughts
I'm back in this nightmare... I know I shouldn't have started to fixate on moles,now I can't stop.
The mole I had to keep monitored is changing. I scratched it while I was in the shower. Made a scab that fell and now the mole... has disappeared completely! It is just a pink spot... And now I'm scared I have amelanotic melanoma.
What if the doctor suspected it and said to come back in 6 months because of it?
What if I scratched a melanoma away?
I can't believe I'm in this again!
Do you plan to see a dermatologist or doctor to get peace of mind? Your description sounds like a normal mole.
I’m currently having this fear because of a mole in my private part. The dermatologist referred me to GI clinic because she can’t remove it at dermatology (I asked to remove it although she said she would just monitor it)
Then calling GI clinic gave me anxiety because they are specialized in oncology too.
I think we are creating unnecessary stress for ourself due to our anxiety. If only if we can trust doctor opinions
Yes I have to go next Wednesday and I'm so scared. He said the mole I have to keep monitored is a Sutton mole and it disappears with time... He wanted to keep it monitored because it was "moving" according to him... I thouth he meant it was enlarging but in reality, and looking at the photo he took of it 6 months ago, it was actually regressing. He said it is a halo nevus and, although I can't see the white circle around it, it is clearly visible in the photo he took, made with the video dermoscopy.
Maybe I'm obsessing again, but I have this feeling that something is wrong wiylth me...
I'm going to the ER today... Can't wait à week to have it checked
I'm going to the ER today... Can't wait à week to have it checked
The ER probably can't/won't do anything about a mole. They'll probably recommend that you see a dermatologist. Halo nevi are normal. I had one on my cheek several years ago. It has since disappeared entirely. I found it odd and was convinced it was skin cancer, but here I am, feel fine as ever.
The ER probably can't/won't do anything about a mole. They'll probably recommend that you see a dermatologist. Halo nevi are normal. I had one on my cheek several years ago. It has since disappeared entirely. I found it odd and was convinced it was skin cancer, but here I am, feel fine as ever.
I went to my GP. She said the little escoriation on the mole is not infected and will return normal in a few days. She said I couldn't possibly scratch a flat mole completely away so the dermatologist (she knows him personally and said I'm in very good hands) should be able to see it with no problem because it is still there.
So hopefully no big deal.
Trying really hard not to Google at the moment.
If you search Sutton nevus on Google it says it is benign BUT (the ever-present BUT) it could still be a regressing melanoma....I hate google
Going tomorrow and I feel only a little bit of anxiety. I hope all goes well but if Fishmanpa could please keep a "told you so" in store for me, I would be super grateful😂😂😂
I'm going at 15:40. I know he will want to excise it and I'm scared because it is near my nipple so really not a good spot for a big ugly scar. My stomach is in a twist right now.
Try not to panic? I know when you're young, if surgery is potentially disfiguring dermatologists will sometimes refer you to a plastic surgeon who can do a neater job. Heck, that was what happened with the skin cancer on my forehead, and I was 38!
Good luck today!
Try not to panic? I know when you're young, if surgery is potentially disfiguring dermatologists will sometimes refer you to a plastic surgeon who can do a neater job. Heck, that was what happened with the skin cancer on my forehead, and I was 38!
Good luck today!
I'm trying really hard :) thanks! 👍
All clear! It was indeed a Halo nevus and it disappeared, not because of the traumatism but because the skin absorbed it.
He said I have a total of 10 moles and it would be a joke if I did a mole mapping every year... So he said I could come back in three years if I want!
Thank you to everybody who replied to me and was supportive.
That describes a normal mole so? :shrug:
if Fishmanpa could please keep a "told you so" in store for me, I would be super grateful
From Rhianna and the "Told Ya So Gang" ;)
https://media.giphy.com/media/3o7mQKuUoOYMkiKJl6/giphy.gif
Positive thoughts
From Rhianna and the "Told Ya So Gang" ;)
https://media.giphy.com/media/3o7mQKuUoOYMkiKJl6/giphy.gif
Positive thoughts
Thank you! Your "told you so" is more of a relief than the doctors' "all clear!" 😂😂
When the doctor said "your moles are fine" I could hear your voice in my head whispering "told you so..." 😂
Powered by vBulletin® Version 4.2.5 Copyright © 2024 vBulletin Solutions Inc. All rights reserved.