mole changing shape and C.T. Scan question pls?

Having scans done is common to make sure Melanoma does not spread.  I know the tube you go into is the MRI.  The CT scan and PET scan is a ring you go through where both ends are open. It has been my experience that once you find that you have melanoma you become so much more aware of spots or changes on your body and it is easy to become worried or scarred.  You just never know about this beast.  Some moles do slowly grow over time.  I know one of the things to watch for is mole growth, but rapid mole growth is really what to watch for, because some moles do grow over years.  I have had 2 moles removed since my initial diagnosis and they were benign, Thank God.  You just never know.  It is good that you keep your derm updated to things so she can stay on top of all.  Good luck to you.

Having scans done is common to make sure Melanoma does not spread.  I know the tube you go into is the MRI.  The CT scan and PET scan is a ring you go through where both ends are open. It has been my experience that once you find that you have melanoma you become so much more aware of spots or changes on your body and it is easy to become worried or scarred.  You just never know about this beast.  Some moles do slowly grow over time.  I know one of the things to watch for is mole growth, but rapid mole growth is really what to watch for, because some moles do grow over years.  I have had 2 moles removed since my initial diagnosis and they were benign, Thank God.  You just never know.  It is good that you keep your derm updated to things so she can stay on top of all.  Good luck to you.

Having scans done is common to make sure Melanoma does not spread.  I know the tube you go into is the MRI.  The CT scan and PET scan is a ring you go through where both ends are open. It has been my experience that once you find that you have melanoma you become so much more aware of spots or changes on your body and it is easy to become worried or scarred.  You just never know about this beast.  Some moles do slowly grow over time.  I know one of the things to watch for is mole growth, but rapid mole growth is really what to watch for, because some moles do grow over years.  I have had 2 moles removed since my initial diagnosis and they were benign, Thank God.  You just never know.  It is good that you keep your derm updated to things so she can stay on top of all.  Good luck to you.

Not all change in a mole means melanoma.  I heard a lecture by a doctor who does mole mapping.  This is a clinic where they photography and compare all your atypical moles at each visit.  97% of all moles photographed were stable.  He stated that the key is to look for ASYMMETRICAL change.  So, if the mole that is bigger now looks basically like a normal mole, it doesn't really matter that it's bigger.  Does that mole look different from all your other moles?  Stand out in some way?  Same with new moles.  Are they new and uniform and look like your other moles?  Then not really a worry.  But new and standing out with asymmetrical change and/or very different looking from all the other moles is a red flag.

Mole photography is a great way to track moles.  And taking a picture of the mole and monitoring in the future against the baseline picture is a valid way to track your moles.  Keeps you from having a bunch of unnecessary biopsies.  It seems this particular mole probably doesn't stand out as being "different" to your derm or your derm would have mentioned biopsying it.

I recently had a mole removed.  It had grown over time and certain characteristics reminded me of my second melanoma primary.  It had grown from small to pencil eraser size.  We checked the photos for verification.  By itself, there was nothing to say the mole was anything but a basic atypical mole (haven't really had any benign mole removals, all mine seem to have some degree of atypia but atypia isn't melanoma).  Anyway, we removed it because it reminded me so much of #2 before that one changed to melanoma.  Not melanoma even though the mole had grown (symmetrically) fairly large in comparison to it's size 8 years ago.  (That's when my last photos were taken).

As for the CT, since you are early stage – hopefully you won't ever have to worry about something like that.  They don't do scans for early stage individuals.

Best wishes,

Janner

Not all change in a mole means melanoma.  I heard a lecture by a doctor who does mole mapping.  This is a clinic where they photography and compare all your atypical moles at each visit.  97% of all moles photographed were stable.  He stated that the key is to look for ASYMMETRICAL change.  So, if the mole that is bigger now looks basically like a normal mole, it doesn't really matter that it's bigger.  Does that mole look different from all your other moles?  Stand out in some way?  Same with new moles.  Are they new and uniform and look like your other moles?  Then not really a worry.  But new and standing out with asymmetrical change and/or very different looking from all the other moles is a red flag.

Mole photography is a great way to track moles.  And taking a picture of the mole and monitoring in the future against the baseline picture is a valid way to track your moles.  Keeps you from having a bunch of unnecessary biopsies.  It seems this particular mole probably doesn't stand out as being "different" to your derm or your derm would have mentioned biopsying it.

I recently had a mole removed.  It had grown over time and certain characteristics reminded me of my second melanoma primary.  It had grown from small to pencil eraser size.  We checked the photos for verification.  By itself, there was nothing to say the mole was anything but a basic atypical mole (haven't really had any benign mole removals, all mine seem to have some degree of atypia but atypia isn't melanoma).  Anyway, we removed it because it reminded me so much of #2 before that one changed to melanoma.  Not melanoma even though the mole had grown (symmetrically) fairly large in comparison to it's size 8 years ago.  (That's when my last photos were taken).

As for the CT, since you are early stage – hopefully you won't ever have to worry about something like that.  They don't do scans for early stage individuals.

Best wishes,

Janner

Not all change in a mole means melanoma.  I heard a lecture by a doctor who does mole mapping.  This is a clinic where they photography and compare all your atypical moles at each visit.  97% of all moles photographed were stable.  He stated that the key is to look for ASYMMETRICAL change.  So, if the mole that is bigger now looks basically like a normal mole, it doesn't really matter that it's bigger.  Does that mole look different from all your other moles?  Stand out in some way?  Same with new moles.  Are they new and uniform and look like your other moles?  Then not really a worry.  But new and standing out with asymmetrical change and/or very different looking from all the other moles is a red flag.

Mole photography is a great way to track moles.  And taking a picture of the mole and monitoring in the future against the baseline picture is a valid way to track your moles.  Keeps you from having a bunch of unnecessary biopsies.  It seems this particular mole probably doesn't stand out as being "different" to your derm or your derm would have mentioned biopsying it.

I recently had a mole removed.  It had grown over time and certain characteristics reminded me of my second melanoma primary.  It had grown from small to pencil eraser size.  We checked the photos for verification.  By itself, there was nothing to say the mole was anything but a basic atypical mole (haven't really had any benign mole removals, all mine seem to have some degree of atypia but atypia isn't melanoma).  Anyway, we removed it because it reminded me so much of #2 before that one changed to melanoma.  Not melanoma even though the mole had grown (symmetrically) fairly large in comparison to it's size 8 years ago.  (That's when my last photos were taken).

As for the CT, since you are early stage – hopefully you won't ever have to worry about something like that.  They don't do scans for early stage individuals.

Best wishes,

Janner