I had a small, new mole on my ear removed via punch biopsy a couple of weeks back. The biopsy came back as severely atypical – I have requested the pathology report, but have not received it yet. My understanding is that in addition to being atypical, they did not obtain clear margins on the original biopsy. My dermatologist referred me to a plastic surgeon for removal of the remaining abnormal cells plus a margin, but my consultation with her is still a couple weeks off and I am driving myself a little crazy with the as yet unanswered questions.
I had a small, new mole on my ear removed via punch biopsy a couple of weeks back. The biopsy came back as severely atypical – I have requested the pathology report, but have not received it yet. My understanding is that in addition to being atypical, they did not obtain clear margins on the original biopsy. My dermatologist referred me to a plastic surgeon for removal of the remaining abnormal cells plus a margin, but my consultation with her is still a couple weeks off and I am driving myself a little crazy with the as yet unanswered questions.
I know that severely atypical does not equal melanoma; that histologically, it's really close, but not quite. Can anyone point me to the results of research studies on how often severely atypical moles do transform into melanoma? I know that 5 mm margins are generally recommended for severely atypical lesions, but I am concerned about how much of my ear that is. It seems like an aggressive treatment, and I am trying to understand what the treatment is backed up by.
I am also wondering if anyone can give me an idea of what to expect for the surgery. The mole was on the scapha/antihelix of my ear, so it's kind of a complex area to work in for the reexcision. Since my dermatologist referred me to a plastic surgeon, I am assuming they expect to perform some level of reconstruction on the site – does anyone know what reconstruction options I'm likely to be presented with? Is it likely they will need to perform a skin graft? What sort of recovery time is typical for this type of surgery?
Thank you.
