# Should I get this mole looked at? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 5, 2017, 11:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-this-mole-looked-at/790531 "2017-07-05T11:23:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Reddy\_Mercury](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/43a26b/32.png) [@Reddy\_Mercury](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reddy_Mercury)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2017, 11:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-this-mole-looked-at/790531/1 "2017-07-05T11:23:39Z")
I’ve just recently noticed it on my skin. It’s not a mole proper, it’s like a birth mark. I’ve only noticed it recently, and it’s much bigger than my other regular beauty marks (see the one below it for comparison). It has light brown streaks running through it as you can see in the pic. Should I get this looked at? [[Album] Imgur: The magic of the Internet ![](https://i.imgur.com/hJcMnyQ.jpeg?fb "Imgur: The magic of the Internet") ](https://imgur.com/a/5nFy4) ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2017, 11:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-this-mole-looked-at/790531/2 "2017-07-05T11:54:34Z")
If you wonder whether you should have something looked at by a doctor, then yes you should. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2017, 11:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-this-mole-looked-at/790531/3 "2017-07-05T11:56:58Z")
I’m not looking at that picture. Go to a doctor. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2017, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-this-mole-looked-at/790531/4 "2017-07-05T12:12:23Z")
I have had enough to do with this subject to be able to offer an amateurish appraisal, but (a) I’m not going to in case I get it wrong and (b) your photo is too blurry for me to tell anyway. So you can take a sharper picture and post it, and then I may form a view, but even then I’m still not going to tell you what I think! ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2017, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-this-mole-looked-at/790531/5 "2017-07-05T14:58:50Z")
[That is an irregular mole.](http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/melanoma/pictures-abnormal-moles) Go to a doctor. ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2017, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-this-mole-looked-at/790531/6 "2017-07-05T18:54:17Z")
As someone who had a melanoma removed from my skin a few years ago, I will join the chorus and recommend you go to a dermatologist (not your usual doctor - go to a dermatologist that specializes in this stuff\*). They will give you a thorough going-over, and even check in hard-to see places (scalp, back, between the cheeks, etc). If you are concerned, why trust the internet - go have a professional decide if it could be a problem. No, I did not even look at the linked photo, either. - My regular doctor dismissed my moles and birthmarks, but I insisted on getting referred to a dermatologist, who found the bad mole. ---
**Author:** ![anomalous1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e56c9b/32.png) [@anomalous1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anomalous1)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2017, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-this-mole-looked-at/790531/7 "2017-07-07T18:42:49Z")
Is that above your knee? If so we could be lost twins. I have one that looks EXACTLY like that, on my right knee, I’ve had it since I was really young. Doctors do love to look at it because they think its some melanoma, when I explain it’s been there for years, they move on. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2017, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-this-mole-looked-at/790531/8 "2017-07-07T19:53:52Z")
It looks okay to me. I’m covered with moles just like that. BUT you should definitely get your whole body looked at once a year or so by a dermatologist. And by WHOLE body, I mean every square inch, including where the sun don’t shine. Yup. I’ve heard of melanomas being discovered in the genital area–I promise I’m not making this up. I went to a couple of dermatologists, seeking the all over mole patrol, but THEY seemed to be squeamish, and did not ask me to remove my panties or even my bra. C’mon people! I’ve got zillions of moles in my chest area (and a case of breast cancer) so don’t lose your nerve. Finally, I went to a dermatologist (a woman) at the local University teaching hospital practice and she looked at every surface cell on my entire body. With a magnifying glass. I was covered with a sheet and she only uncovered the relevant parts while she was inspecting. She had a note-taker in the room behind a screen (a young man, and she asked if he could be in the room before she let him in) who took down all the arcane, esoteric doctor stuff she dictated. I felt much relieved after. Go get all your moles looked at. Seriously. This is one of those times when the consequences of a miscalculation could be deadly. (But your mole looks totally fine to me. IANAD.)