Having an unsightly mole can bother you, but there are ways that you should take care of them and ways that you shouldn't. If you're unhappy about a mole you have, you shouldn't try to take care of it at home. Here's why.
Tip of the Iceberg
Many moles are completely harmless and benign, but not all of them are. In these instances, moles can be the proverbial tip of the iceberg. In other words, they may be only one part of the problem, and the rest of the problem may lie under the surface of your skin.
Moles are sometimes cancerous, but that doesn't mean that the cancer necessarily stays in one place of the skin. This is why it's important to seek medical help for a mole you're interested in getting rid of, even if you think it's not suspicious.
Testing
You might think that even if the mole is cancerous, getting rid of it now is a good thing, and you can see someone about it later. However, moles are often used as a testing material to determine if there's cancer or not. Removing the mole first means that you may need a tissue biopsy that could leave a scar, as it would have to seek a sample from deeper tissue.
What to Do
Thankfully, dealing with a mole is very easy. All you need to do is seek help from a dermatologist.
Dermatologists are skin experts that can determine whether or not a mole is suspicious often just by looking at it. However, they also excel at simply getting rid of moles, too. So if there's nothing to worry about with your mole, your dermatologist will be glad to remove it for you. You can ensure that it will have far less of a chance for scarring or marks left behind than if you had tried to do it at home, too.
If your mole is suspicious, your dermatologist will remove part of it or all of it and send it in for a biopsy. This is where lab techs look at the specimen under a microscope to determine if they're healthy cells or cancerous cells. If cancer is detected, your dermatologist will work with you to determine if the cancer has spread elsewhere or if it was limited to the mole.
Removing a mole may sound tempting, but you should only do it under the right circumstances: with a professional trained in dermatology. Contact a dermatologist today if you have a mole you're worried about or just want gone.
For more information, websites like https://eastcarolinadermatology.com can help.