Can you remove a mole

Jump to content. Moles are skin growths made up of cells that produce color pigment. A mole can appear anywhere on the skin, alone or in groups. Most people get a few moles during their first 20 years of life.

They are usually brown in color but can be blue, black, or flesh-colored. Most moles are harmless and don't cause pain or other symptoms unless you rub them or they bump against something. Skin tags are small, soft pieces of skin that stick out on a thin stem. They most often appear on the neck, armpits, upper trunk, and body folds. The cause of skin tags is not known.

They are harmless. Most moles and skin tags don't require treatment. But sometimes people want to remove them for cosmetic reasons or because they cause discomfort when they rub against clothing or get caught in jewelry. Check with your doctor if you have a mole that looks different from your other moles. There are four basic types of non-surgical mole removal: excision, shave removal, laser removal, and freezing.

Excision, also known as cutting, involves removing the mole and a small margin of skin using a scalpel or special surgical scissors.

If your mole has grown deep into the skin, your doctor may need to use stitches to close the wound after your mole is removed. A shave removal of a mole is similar to an excision. Using a scalpel, your doctor will shave off layers of the mole until it is gone.

Some moles can be removed using lasers. This is most commonly done with small, flat, non-cancerous moles. During laser removal, your doctor will use bursts of light radiation to destroy the mole tissue. To fully remove a mole using laser therapy, you may need to have two or three treatments.

It is important to keep in mind that removal of non-cancerous moles may not be covered by insurance. Your surgeon can assist you in applying for approval. Moles can appear anywhere on the skin. Most adults have 10 to 40 common moles. They form when pigment cells grow in a cluster instead of being spread out throughout the skin. Common moles are usually small, round or oval-shaped skin growths with a well-defined border. They may be pink, tan, brown or black.

Atypical moles look different. The odd appearance of these cells could lead a pathologist to misdiagnose a benign mole as melanoma, meaning you would have to go through therapy for melanoma that you never needed. Between the cosmetic risks, potential for incorrect removal and very real risk of not properly addressing a dangerous skin cancer, Dr. Sarnoff says trying to remove a mole at home is highly inadvisable. Sarnoff notes that during the COVID pandemic, doctor visits may be different, but you have options.

You can ask to send photographs to your physician or make a teledermatology appointment to get an assessment. Sign up for e-newsletter.