Question to the expert: Is it possible to get sick with cancer from tearing up a mole
Olga Lukinskaya
RESPONSES TO THE MAJORITY OF US QUESTIONS we used to search online. In the new series of materials we ask such questions: burning, unexpected or widespread - to professionals in various fields.
Last year, we talked about the risk of melanoma - an extremely dangerous skin tumor - and how to reduce this risk: you need to use sunscreen, regularly examine the skin, ideally undergo screening with photographing, and moles that seemed suspicious to the doctor, delete and send to research to the lab. These rules are suitable for those who do not care, and are especially important for those who have more than fifty moles (although recently there is evidence that a much smaller number requires close attention).
But what to do if you injured a pigmented formation on the skin (for example, you accidentally damaged a mole with your fingernail or with a strap of a swimsuit)? Is it more dangerous to scratch it? Should I immediately go to the doctor and take action? We asked these questions to the experts.
Anastasia Kolodiy
dermatovenerologist, cosmetologist of the clinic "Chaika"
Simple nevi, or moles, are the most common benign skin tumors. Most often, they look like small flat specks, and with age they can turn pale and slightly rise above the surface, greatly expanding among older people. The growth of nevi is associated with hormonal factors (therefore, moles may appear or increase in adolescents and during pregnancy) and, of course, with exposure to sunlight. Today there are no clear indications for the removal of moles that do not bother; need to remove nevi that have changed externally, interfere physically (for example, constantly in contact with the edge of the clothes) or aesthetically.
If you have damaged a mole, you should not panic, but you need to see a doctor (dermatologist or oncologist). First, as with any damage to the skin, it is necessary to prevent infection. It is necessary to treat the wound with an antiseptic and, if necessary, use wound-healing agents like panthenol. Secondly, although the trauma itself will not cause melanoma or another type of skin cancer, the tendency to injury and bleeding may indicate that the adverse process has already begun. And if we are talking about melanoma, then timely access to a doctor can save lives.
It is important to apply not to a cosmetology clinic and certainly not to a beauty salon, but to an institution where there is an oncodermatologist. Of course, any removal of the birthmark should be accompanied by its sending for histological examination. There are cases when a man removed a disturbing "mole" in the cabin, without examining it under a microscope, and after a while he has metastasis of a malignant tumor and it becomes clear that it was a melanoma, but the precious time has already been lost.
Alexander Geinitz
Doctor of Medical Sciences, professor, surgeon of the highest category of the Atlas Medical Center
There are pigmented formations, they can be located at the level of the skin or rise above it, they are also called birthmarks - this is local pigmentation, accumulation of melanocytes. They should not be touched unless they cause major cosmetic or aesthetic discomforts. Another story is pigmented skin tumors, or nevi (they can include papillomas, keratomas, fibromas). If they rise above the skin level - this is the absolute indication for their removal.
Nevi, or, in the conventional sense, moles, are dangerous because they can degenerate into malignant skin tumors, the most dangerous of which is melanoma. If a person accidentally damaged a mole, then it is better to immediately consult a doctor. The global trend at the moment - any skin neoplasm to be removed, followed by analysis of this tissue. And also a traumatized mole is first of all a road to infection. It must be said that not only injuries and ultraviolet radiation, including in solariums, are dangerous, but also infrared (thermal) sunlight. There are infrared saunas - and they are also dangerous.
The number of moles is genetically determined and, of course, if there are two hundred of them, you do not need to delete everything. It is necessary to get rid of moles that grow, become inflamed or somehow bother a person. In any case, the decision should be made by the doctor after a thorough examination.
It is believed that when a laser is removed, the tissue completely evaporates, and there is nothing to carry for histological examination - but in reality this is not so. A thin laser beam can cut off the formation on the skin, like a scalpel; what is left on the skin can really evaporate; at the same time oncological principles are observed so that nothing remains.
Photo:Danila - stock.adobe.com, andriano_cz - stock.adobe.com