› Forums › Cutaneous Melanoma Community › Need help reading lab report of atypical melanocytic proliferation
- This topic has 9 replies, 2 voices, and was last updated 12 years, 6 months ago by
Janner.
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- February 25, 2013 at 11:13 pm
I have 100+ moles and freckles on my body as a pale skinned blonde. I use sunblock now but growing up I tanned/sunburned myself. I have had numerous moles removed and the report comes back as dysplastic Nevus but this last biopsy showed an atypical melanocytic proliferation. The microscope description says “there is an irregular proliferation of melanocytes discontinuously and irregularly spaced. Occasional cells show large nuclei with a big nucleolus and coarse chromatin. There are epidermal melanocytes”I did have a re-excision and it was completely excised. My concern is, was this skin cancer or a pre-cancer? I have been going for skin check every 6 months which typically results in a few biopsies. Should I switch to a demonologist who specializes in skin cancer? Should I be worried with so many moles and this new type growing? Any advise is appreciated as this is a new diagnosis for me and I want to do all I can to be proactive.
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- February 26, 2013 at 1:46 am
Atypical moles are not "pre-cancerous". Pre-cancerous implies that if left alone, this would turn into melanoma. That is highly unlikely. The detail of the report is justifying the final diagnosis which you didn't include. If the lesion were labeled "severely atypical" or words to that effect, that might have a higher risk. Because you have a lot of moles, you are probably at higher risk than those who do not have lots of moles. But that doesn't mean you will get melanoma. As for your derm choice, it's up to you. I don't rely on my derm to find anything. I watch my own body and if a mole changes or appears to be the ugly duckling, it is biopsied. It sounds as if your derm is willing to do biopsies and that is good. I've had 3 melanomas and I've found them all myself. They were all changing. So if you are comfortable with your current doc and he seems to do a good job monitoring your skin, I see no reason to change. YOU have to be comfortable with your care, not anyone else, however.
Best wishes,
Janner
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- February 26, 2013 at 1:46 am
Atypical moles are not "pre-cancerous". Pre-cancerous implies that if left alone, this would turn into melanoma. That is highly unlikely. The detail of the report is justifying the final diagnosis which you didn't include. If the lesion were labeled "severely atypical" or words to that effect, that might have a higher risk. Because you have a lot of moles, you are probably at higher risk than those who do not have lots of moles. But that doesn't mean you will get melanoma. As for your derm choice, it's up to you. I don't rely on my derm to find anything. I watch my own body and if a mole changes or appears to be the ugly duckling, it is biopsied. It sounds as if your derm is willing to do biopsies and that is good. I've had 3 melanomas and I've found them all myself. They were all changing. So if you are comfortable with your current doc and he seems to do a good job monitoring your skin, I see no reason to change. YOU have to be comfortable with your care, not anyone else, however.
Best wishes,
Janner
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- February 26, 2013 at 1:46 am
Atypical moles are not "pre-cancerous". Pre-cancerous implies that if left alone, this would turn into melanoma. That is highly unlikely. The detail of the report is justifying the final diagnosis which you didn't include. If the lesion were labeled "severely atypical" or words to that effect, that might have a higher risk. Because you have a lot of moles, you are probably at higher risk than those who do not have lots of moles. But that doesn't mean you will get melanoma. As for your derm choice, it's up to you. I don't rely on my derm to find anything. I watch my own body and if a mole changes or appears to be the ugly duckling, it is biopsied. It sounds as if your derm is willing to do biopsies and that is good. I've had 3 melanomas and I've found them all myself. They were all changing. So if you are comfortable with your current doc and he seems to do a good job monitoring your skin, I see no reason to change. YOU have to be comfortable with your care, not anyone else, however.
Best wishes,
Janner
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- February 26, 2013 at 11:08 pm
Thank you for your help. The diagnosis said there were signs of severly dysplastic Nevus. The only other difference in the report was this one had a microscope description stating there were epidermal melancytes.
This is all relatively new to me and I just want to be informed so thank you for any information -
- February 26, 2013 at 11:08 pm
Thank you for your help. The diagnosis said there were signs of severly dysplastic Nevus. The only other difference in the report was this one had a microscope description stating there were epidermal melancytes.
This is all relatively new to me and I just want to be informed so thank you for any information -
- February 27, 2013 at 1:57 am
"Epidermal melanocytes" basically describes a mole. Most melanocytes are found in the epidermis. When atypical ones are found in deeper layers of skin, that's of more concern. In general, reading the pathological description isn't all that helpful. It is basically the pathologist justifying his final diagnosis. Trying to parse the sentences individually is of little prognostic value. Each mole/atypical mole/melanoma has different characteristics and I wouldn't expect any pathology to look like my last one. (All my three melanomas had different "features").
Basically, if the final diagnosis was severely atypical, you should have a wide local excision (WLE) with 5mm margins. If the diagnosis isn't severely atypical, then conservative margins are fine. I would watch the area for any pigment regrowth. (That goes for any biopsy removal). Watch other moles for CHANGE!
Best wishes,
Janner
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- February 27, 2013 at 1:57 am
"Epidermal melanocytes" basically describes a mole. Most melanocytes are found in the epidermis. When atypical ones are found in deeper layers of skin, that's of more concern. In general, reading the pathological description isn't all that helpful. It is basically the pathologist justifying his final diagnosis. Trying to parse the sentences individually is of little prognostic value. Each mole/atypical mole/melanoma has different characteristics and I wouldn't expect any pathology to look like my last one. (All my three melanomas had different "features").
Basically, if the final diagnosis was severely atypical, you should have a wide local excision (WLE) with 5mm margins. If the diagnosis isn't severely atypical, then conservative margins are fine. I would watch the area for any pigment regrowth. (That goes for any biopsy removal). Watch other moles for CHANGE!
Best wishes,
Janner
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- February 27, 2013 at 1:57 am
"Epidermal melanocytes" basically describes a mole. Most melanocytes are found in the epidermis. When atypical ones are found in deeper layers of skin, that's of more concern. In general, reading the pathological description isn't all that helpful. It is basically the pathologist justifying his final diagnosis. Trying to parse the sentences individually is of little prognostic value. Each mole/atypical mole/melanoma has different characteristics and I wouldn't expect any pathology to look like my last one. (All my three melanomas had different "features").
Basically, if the final diagnosis was severely atypical, you should have a wide local excision (WLE) with 5mm margins. If the diagnosis isn't severely atypical, then conservative margins are fine. I would watch the area for any pigment regrowth. (That goes for any biopsy removal). Watch other moles for CHANGE!
Best wishes,
Janner
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- February 26, 2013 at 11:08 pm
Thank you for your help. The diagnosis said there were signs of severly dysplastic Nevus. The only other difference in the report was this one had a microscope description stating there were epidermal melancytes.
This is all relatively new to me and I just want to be informed so thank you for any information
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Tagged: cutaneous melanoma
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