Scared :( - Murrieta,CA

Updated on February 21, 2014
R.M. asks from Evanston, IL
9 answers

I went to the dermatologist for a weird bump I had on my eyebrow area for the last few months… the PA looked first and then brought the head derm in for a second set of eyes… well they think it might be a basal cell carcinoma so they decided to biopsy… I know that those are usually easily treated so, while I am nervous, I am more worried about another mole they found on my back that I didn't even know was there… I heard the derm say the borders were slightly irregular and it was darker than the rest of my moles. So they biopsied that as well and I have just been sick ever since. I feel like I have convinced myself that it is advanced melanoma and that it has already spread and I just can't stop crying. I am trying so hard not to "put the cart in front of the horse" so to speak but I just can't help it. I feel like if the dermatologist, who sees moles all day every day, thought it looked bad then obviously it must be bad, right? :( Has this happened to anyone else and the mole came back ok? I have to wait 2 weeks for results and this is just killing me.

What can I do next?

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E.M.

answers from Phoenix on

I swear dermatologists just enjoy chopping off moles :) Very often, these come back as nothing of concern. If it is something, they will take it off and do some follow up treatments and you will be fine. The C word is so scary, but honestly people have skin cancers removed all the time with excellent results. Nothing positive can come of stressing about it.
My very best wishes that this will be all over in a matter of days, and you will be just another person with a brief panic tale to tell!!!

1 mom found this helpful

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V.S.

answers from Reading on

I had a mole on my back removed and biopsied. It was precancerous, so they called me back to do minor surgery to make sure they got clean margins. That was the end of it. Advanced cancer bleeds, bubbles, and is more than just a mole - at least cases I've seen. Hang in there!

5 moms found this helpful
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D..

answers from Miami on

If I were in your shoes, I would use these next two weeks to clean some clutter out of your life. Physical clutter, spiritual clutter, whatever fits the bill. If you can't stop the crying, at least get something done WHILE you cry. Make it a mission to do things that need to get done while you wait.

Now, when the news comes back okay (and there is a lot that they can do even if the news is bad - I have friends who are just fine many years later), you will have kept your sanity by getting important stuff done while you waited for the news. Perhaps it will spur you afterwards to do even more to get your life in real order, tackle a bucket list of some sort for enjoying life more, etc. Sometimes things like this provide a kick in the pants to us to remember how precious life is.

4 moms found this helpful
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P.K.

answers from New York on

Anything a dermatologist sees, that is just a bit different, not necessarily bad, they take off. You might consider taking something to calm yourself,,if you are really as upset as you say you are. Right now there is no reason to,think that you have cancer. Relax.

3 moms found this helpful
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J.C.

answers from New York on

What a horrible position to be in. Of course you're scared. And two weeks. Two days would be bad.

Please try not to worry. The best thing is that you went to your Dr. and he is having it tested. That is a good thing, Luckily he saw it. Hang in there, get some Xanax if need be and just stay calm.

Good luck - keep us in the loop.

2 moms found this helpful
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M.U.

answers from Tampa on

Dear scared,
I have had very similar experiences. I have many moles all over my body, mostly on my trunk. The first time I went to do a mole check a few year ago, the doc said that I have "lots of irregular-looking moles." He biopsied 3 of them. I was terrified and in the same state as you describe, thinking this is it (I am a catastrophizer by nature :).
What I learned since then, as I have been getting annual mole checks and have had additional biopsies over the years, is that many derm docs tend to biopsy anything that looks even slightly irregular, just in case. Many people can have lots of irregular looking moles, and most of them are normal. But they don't know for sure unless they biopsy it, so better safe than sorry, even if it's just a 1% chance.
A dermatology resident also told me that of all of the skin biopsies that are performed, 99% turn out normal. This put things in perspective for me and helped to calm me down until the results came back. Also, even though they say that the results take 2 weeks, usually they have results much sooner. Try calling to find out, it may cut down that waiting/not knowing time.
Good luck! Chances are very good that you are just fine :)

2 moms found this helpful
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D.D.

answers from Pittsburgh on

Just because something looks irregular to the dermatologist doesn't mean it is cancer. Of course you should have it checked, but please don't panic.

I've had 4 suspicious looking moles biopsied, and none were cancer. One was slightly atypical, and they went back and took a slightly bigger biopsy to make sure it was all gone. But they were never cancer, and I never needed more than that to be done.

Take deep breaths, and don't panic.

1 mom found this helpful

B.C.

answers from Norfolk on

Relax!
Worry doesn't do anything good for you, it changes nothing and it wastes your energy.

First off there's probably nothing to worry about.
Second - even if it IS something to worry about it is the most treatable/recoverable cancer there is.

I've had a few funny looking moles removed.
The dermatologist removed them 'just in case'.
But they tuned out to be nothing but funny looking moles.

If you've had any risky behaviors in the past (sun bathing (tanning and burning are both bad for you), tanning booths, spending a lot of time outside without sunblock then consider this to be a wake up call and don't do that stuff again.
You only need 15 min per day of sunlight for your skin to make all the vitamin D you need.

1 mom found this helpful
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V.R.

answers from Los Angeles on

Yes.....I am always having to have moles removed. Twice I had to go back because they did not get the margins. No big deal. It is what it is. They will go back and get the margins and it's gone. Even if it has spread, your worrying is not going to lessen the results. Put it out of your mind, and deal with it when it becomes a problem.

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