[GuavaGirl]

I just noticed that a mole on my stomach that is normally flat, now is scabby and hurts when I touch it.

What kind of doctor do I need to make an appt. with?

 

[zoe196]

I read your thread title and initially thought mole as in furry creature that lives underground...and I thought suspicious like rabid/ suspicious like mistrustful...huh??

then I realised...

and I'd see a dermatologist. Although your regular Dr. should be able to identify a potentially harmful one...and would probably refer you to a dermatologist.

I hope it's nothing serious.

Zoe, mamma to Thomas 1/06

 

[artgoddess]

Dermatologist

 

[lindberg99]

I would go to a dermatologist. I had a family practice doctor remove 3 moles and they all left scars. The next time I went to a dermatologist and a PA removed them and there was no scar at all.

The dermatologist will probably remove it and sent it to a lab for testing. I had a really weird shaped kind of scabby one once and it was nothing. Then I had another one that was flat and round but just a little different pigment. That one was precancerous. So you might want to get a full body check if you have other moles too.

 

[jeliphish]

Quote:

Originally Posted by artgoddess Dermatologist

yup

 

[pumpkin]

Definitely a dermatologist. However, I have yet to find a dermatologist I can get into on less than several months notice, though I suspect this is a regional issue because we didn't have this problem in other cities. If you can't get into the doc in a reasonable amount of time, I would start with your GP to at least get it looked at.

 

[greeny]

Quote:

Definitely a dermatologist. However, I have yet to find a dermatologist I can get into on less than several months notice

Yes! They have the longest wait. I go every six months to see my dermatologist because I have TONS of irregular moles, so I schedule way in advance. But when I was looking for one at first, every doc's wait was at least three months (and I'm right outside Chicago! where there are lots and lots of docs! crazy!).

 

[lindberg99]

Ours has maybe a 6 week wait but one time when my son had this weird thing on his face (it turned out to be a cyst but I thought it was some kind of infection), I asked if they had any "urgent" appts and got in within a few days. I don't know if they would do that for a mole though but it couldn't hurt to ask.

 

[EFmom]

Quote:

Originally Posted by pumpkin Definitely a dermatologist. However, I have yet to find a dermatologist I can get into on less than several months notice, though I suspect this is a regional issue because we didn't have this problem in other cities. If you can't get into the doc in a reasonable amount of time, I would start with your GP to at least get it looked at.

Around here it's an 8 month wait, if they will take a new patient at all, even if you have something suspicious. They are too busy shooting people full of botox to deal with actual medical issues. I had a spot my gp thought looked like skin cancer and still couldn't get in sooner.

 

[Pumpkin_Pie]

I had a suspicious mole and I went to my GP. She removed the mole and said she could give me a referral to a dermatologist if I wanted one too. She sent the mole off to the lab, it came back negative, and I declined the derm. Although now I wish that I had gone while I had the health insurance coverage for it.

 

[GuavaGirl]

Thanks everyone.

The reason I asked is because about 5 years ago I did go to a dermatologist for full body mole check, and she removed 2, and left awful scars. I just thought that's the way it was, until a friend showed me her mole removal.

I know the lady did it with a punch. Does that leave more scarring?

Also, there is no dermatologist in my town (closest is 1.5 hrs.), so I was thinking of going to a general practioner, but wasn't sure if I could go for something like this.

 

[EFmom]

If you are going to have the mole removed, you can have it taken off by a plastic surgeon, and you will likely have better results than a gp or dermatologist.

 

[Pumpkin_Pie]

Quote:

Originally Posted by GuavaGirl Thanks everyone. The reason I asked is because about 5 years ago I did go to a dermatologist for full body mole check, and she removed 2, and left awful scars. I just thought that's the way it was, until a friend showed me her mole removal. I know the lady did it with a punch. Does that leave more scarring? Also, there is no dermatologist in my town (closest is 1.5 hrs.), so I was thinking of going to a general practioner, but wasn't sure if I could go for something like this.

Some people just scar more than others in general. I form keloids whenever I get a cut. It is big, ugly, itchy scar tissue. With the two moles I had removed, they left pretty ugly scars. I asked the doctor if it was possible to have the scars fixed somehow, and she said that my body would just make bigger uglier scars. It is just how my body works. I am sure a plastic surgeon could possibly make the scars a bit less "ugly", but I am betting insurance wouldn't cover it just to make lesser scars.

 

[lyterae]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pumpkin_Pie Some people just scar more than others in general. I form keloids whenever I get a cut. It is big, ugly, itchy scar tissue. With the two moles I had removed, they left pretty ugly scars. I asked the doctor if it was possible to have the scars fixed somehow, and she said that my body would just make bigger uglier scars. It is just how my body works. I am sure a plastic surgeon could possibly make the scars a bit less "ugly", but I am betting insurance wouldn't cover it just to make lesser scars.

My body reacts the same way, I've had a cyst removed three times (the last time ended up just being scar tissue). Due to the amounts of scar tissue that have formed. I know have an ugly lumpy red scar about 3/4" long on my upper back. I wish I'd known that it could be variation of normal and I wouldn't have had them do it a third time.