On 5/3/2007 Ashleighf10984 wrote:
I'm 22 and have been tanning since I was around 16. Not year round, basically just in the summer. Well I've been tanning since February of this year and yesterday I noticed a spot on my chest (right above my left breast) that appears to be a mole. I don't recall it ever being there before or if it was it didn't appear to big an actual mole it looked more like a freckle. I can't remember if there was ever even a spot there in the first place, but I know when it was never risen off of my skin before. It's a little red around the edges (like a red circle around it). When I rub my finger over it I can tell it's a little tender. I just noticed it yesterday because ticks are so bad this season I've been checking myself all over and honestly I thought it was a small tick until I looked closer. It may be red because I scratched it when I first noticed it yesterday. I'm just wondering if this is something to worry about or if any of you have experienced the same thing or something similar? Should I just wait a few days and see if the redness/tenderness goes away? Share your thoughts! AND I know the tanning bed is bad for me...I don't want you to yell @ me a/b that I just want your opinion a/b the mole!!
You're NOT a worry wart - you're a smart wart. And I won't tell you tanning beds are bad for you (LOL...you sound like my daughter, who is 24 and lives on the beach in San Diego, despite all of my skin cancer treatments, who tells me she knows better BUT still wants a tan...sigh). The best advice I can give you is to watch it closely and see if it changes. If it doesn't improve, see a doctor. As far as I know, most skin cancers don't sound like that, and sun damage isn't likely to present itself in the way you described it - it usually takes years before you see the awful results and then it's too late. However, that being sad, I do know that there are always exceptions and you should never take skin issues lightly. Melanoma, which is the worst stuff, is usually irregular and spreading, not a nice little circle like a mole. The redness could be inflammation but, again, watch it and have it looked at if it doesn't go away soon. Then when you next go to your doctor for a regular checkup, have him/her look at it even if you have decided it's nothing. No one ever says, "gee...I wish I'd never gone to the doctor about this." But you do hear people say, "gee...I wish I'd have gone to the doctor sooner."