Is a Mole Just a Mole?

September 03, 2010, By Kurt Simonsen 1 comment

My uncle was covered in moles. His back resembled a massive Braille ledger and his shoulders those medieval armor plates worn by warriors. Oddly enough, I never once heard him or his wife speak about them. As a little kid, I couldn't see anything else when I was with him.

Today I'm finding the dreaded little beasts on me, too, though not nearly as many as my uncle had. A few decent buggers have popped up over the years, and a bunch of little guys seem to appear every few months, but in no way is it an issue like it was with him. Or so I thought.

My uncle died of cancer, but not any type of skin carcinoma. You'd think with that many moles he would have visited his dermatologist often, yet I don't think he even had one. Therefore, I never really worried about my skin, either. If he didn't, why should I?

Well, that was all well and good until I noticed a small, almost waxy spot beneath my left eye. It looked like a tiny, transparent speck, like a little jellyfish on my face. It didn't hurt but it was certainly different, and it definitely hadn't been there before.

I asked my general practitioner about it during my routine physical and he said that he didn't think it was anything, but to be safe he referred me to a local dermatologist. After a small needle prick, a quick scrapping and a microscope analysis, I learned that it was a basal cell skin cancer.

I was shocked. At 36, I was healthy and strong; I didn't think I was going to get something so unexpected.

Long story short, I had an in-house procedure that left me with an incision mark the length of a nickel, held together by six stitches. The cancer was gone, but even though the scar would soon disappear, the ever-present vigil had just begun.

With that, I appeal to all men to examine themselves and to be aware of any new blemishes that appear. No one is too young to check. Keep an eye out for odd blemishes, new spots that seem irregular, and existing moles with changes in coloration or shape.

I was lucky. I had a basal cell cancer, which is the most common form and appears as a small, fleshy bump on the head, neck or hands; it can be gotten rid of rather easily. The second most common form of skin cancer is squamous cell, which normally shows up as nodules or red, scaly patches of skin. Like basal cell cancer, if discovered, it is easily treated. Understand, however, that these two forms can be precursors to the third and most dangerous kind: melanoma. This cancer, which appears in the cells that produce skin pigment, is aggressive and can spread to other parts of the body. Paying attention to the color, diameter, symmetry and borders of existing moles is critical to finding a possible melanoma. If you are fair-skinned and do not tan easily, be on the lookout.

Make a dermatologist part of your yearly rotation of doctors. I have started to visit mine regularly and he has assured me time and again that early detection is the key to successful treatment.