Please help I’m going insane !
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Hello everyone ! I’ve come across this forum 2 weeks ago and I must say that it is a gift for all the patients and their family around the world. I’ve read many posts and have learned a lot, but also helped me to calm my mind a bit My aunt has just recently been diagnosed with melanoma in situ, which was surgically removed and is now healing well. This came as a shock to us so my mother had a visit to a dermatologisr to check some of her moles that she was worried about. She doesn’t have any worrisome ones, except for an atypical one on her upper back.
Her derm checked it and he said that it doesn’t concern him at this point so he recommended monitoring it for change. My mother told him and me that she is aware of the risk for melanoma many years now and she has been conducting weekly self skin exams for years now. She told me that the atypical one hasn’t changed at all for the past 5-6 years.
But after my aunt’s diagnosis I am very worried so I conducted a search on the internet about dysplastic nevi and I got teriffied ! My mother’s I think is a little less than 20mm wide (but I haven’t measured it myself, she says it’s 15mm) and it has some spots of different colors, even though it is relatively symmetrical (except the colors), it has an oval ish shape and the borders aren’t fading into the skin. Now I know the doctor should know better than me, but can an atypical mole be this wide without being a melanoma ? Is it possible that it went unchanged for years and still be concerning at this point ?
I’m sorry for the long post, but it’s been 3 weeks since that visit and I just can’t concentrate on anything else. I’m thinking that my mother will have one too and that we won’t catch it early and I become paranoid ! Any answer will be useful ! Thank you in advance !!!
Please move your post to Stage I, newly diagnosed probably best. Dysplastic nevi run in families and with regular check ups are not a reason to freak out. I know since my husband has this. He was carefully photographed and checked regularly for any change. Try not to overthink this..but do be diligent.
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