really worried about mole/freckle

[caitlinn]

so basically for as long as i can remember i’ve had this really small ‘mole’ which i wouldn’t even call a mole, it’s one of those small freckle type things you get all over your body on the side of my face at the start of my hairline next to my ear. it’s underneath my hair. it’s light brown and around 2/3mm with an even, clear border and every so often for at least the last couple of years it gets crusty and bleeds, this lasts a few days and i pick at it and eventually it heals and i forget about it again. i always wonder if i should’ve went to a doctor since a bleeding mole is supposed to be a cause for concern, but it has never grown or anything so i’ve just told myself it must just be getting irritated by my hair or something. but now that it’s flared up again i’m panicking, if it turns out this mole is actually a melanoma and i’ve left it all this time, surely it has spread everywhere now and i’m doomed? i’m hoping someone can give me some reassurance that this isn’t the case based on the fact that there are no other changes, and some light can be shed on what’s causing this and what i should do? for example would a cancerous mole bleed constantly/much more regularly and exhibit other changes in such a long time such as colour/size/shape change or is that not guaranteed? also i’m 18 and without a family history of skin cancer but i am still very worried about this, i would feel so silly going to a doctor about it.

[caitlinn]

anyone any ideas?

[BlueIris]

It's almost certainly just a mole, but in view of the bleeding maybe get checked to make sure it's not basal cell carcinoma. Disclaimer: if it is (it probably isn't) it's a breeze to get rid of so don't worry, and I'll happily share my experiences if you ever need them.

[caitlinn]

It's almost certainly just a mole, but in view of the bleeding maybe get checked to make sure it's not basal cell carcinoma. Disclaimer: if it is (it probably isn't) it's a breeze to get rid of so don't worry, and I'll happily share my experiences if you ever need them.

thank you, how easy it is for a doctor to diagnose that? because when i’ve been to my go about moles before they tend to take one quick look and tell me it’s nothing, which doesn’t exactly reassure me since it isn’t really thorough. and if it was a bcc, considering it’s been around and bleeding for multiple years could it not be dangerous and have spread by this point? upon closer inspection now that it’s not bleeding it seems to be pink rather than brown.

[caitlinn]

on my scalp for years i’ve had lots of little hard bits of skin that often scab or bleed when i pick at them, one of my friends has them too and she says they’re cysts, it’s hard to see what they look like since they’re under all my hair but i’m wondering if (hopefully) this is what this freckle could be too, it’s just more noticeable since it is under my thin sideburn hair and not my actual scalp, any ideas anyone?

[BlueIris]

BCC doesn't metastise, it simply grows very slowly. I left mine to scab over and bleed in an endless cycle for five years, and no harm was done long-term.

[caitlinn]

BCC doesn't metastise, it simply grows very slowly. I left mine to scab over and bleed in an endless cycle for five years, and no harm was done long-term.

so to you does it sound more like a bcc than melanoma, if it was anything serious at all? if it was a melanoma would i have noticed change in size or spreading to other parts of my body by now or is that not guaranteed?

[BlueIris]

I think it probably just sounds like a patch of badly behaved skin, to be honest. However, from what I know, I think melanoma would have caused far more problems far more quickly? Heck, my BCC caused more problems more quickly than that.

[WiseMonkey]

I'm older, but have this going on in the front part of my hairline. It's been there for some years now but the dermatologist couldn't see it properly. I think mine is an actinic keratosis or solar kerotosis which is a pre-cancerous caused by sun exposure, they're very common. Don't worry most come and go and disappear but persistent ones can be removed with liquid nitrogen. They are nothing to do with melanoma.