Moles
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Moles
June 2006
My six year old has a mole right in the middle of his cheek. We have a wonderful
pediatric dermatologist (Renee Howard) who recommended removing it, not
because it posses any health risk but because it is very noticeable and once school
age kids enter first/second grade they usually want this sort of thing gone.
I'm not sure if we should have our pediatric dermatologist remove it or a plastic
surgeon since it is in a very prominent location. Our pediatrician could not
recommend a pediatric plastic surgeon since they mostly deal with larger
reconstructive issues. Has anyone had a similar experience or suggestions?
Thanks
Bridget
Hold out for a plastic surgeon. My spouse is in pediatrics, and that's
what he always advises for the face. I also had my derm do a leg mole
removal recently, and was not happy with the scar.
My spouse said, ''well, if you were concerned about the scar, you should
have gone to a plastic surgeon.'' (Now he tells me...) You could call
Children's Hospital in Oakland for a referral
I posed your question to a close friend who is a plastic surgeon. Her
name is Dr.
Victoria Pao, she practices in the East Bay, and here is her reply:
Overall, if you ask a plastic surgeon who would be better at mole
removal, a plastic surgeon will always vote on their own specialty.
(More surgical experience, anesthesia experience, etc.)
It's tricky with kids b/c there's no ''right'' time to operate, but in
general, it does spare the child teasing when an obviously deforming
trait (a large mole in a conspicuous area) is removed early.
Unfortunately, the trade off is a scar. And children are not usually
the most compliant with scar management or surgery.
Anesthesia is recommended - usually a hospital setting.
I'd be happy to evaluate (mom should check to make sure I'm part of
their health care plan - right now, I'm contracted with the PPOs of
Aetna, Blue Cross, Blue Shield, HealthNet and Medicare - maybe more, but
I can't think of them off the top of my head). She can always call my
office (510)537-1577. Children's Hospital Oakland has good plastic
surgeons, too. lynna
What a coincidence--almost scary. My son (now 6) was born with a
birthmark on his forehead and at his last well-kid checkup, the ped
asked about it. She sent us to a dermatologist, who does want to remove
it, just in case. I resisted, but my friends pointed out that it really
*is* better safe than sorry.
I thought the dermo was going to be the one to remove it, but Kaiser has
given us a referral to a plastic surgeon! I was in favor of this from
the beginning, if nothing else but for the stitches. This is something
on his face; remember that his face (and the scar) will grow as he
grows. So I want the best plastic surgery care possible... and I'm
thinking you would, too. Feel free to contact me. Jennie
June 2006
Hi there,
I would like to know if there's any recommendation in regards
to what kind of treatment, surgery, etc I should undergo in
order to get facial imperfections, mainly moles, removed. They
aren't cancerigenous, thank God. Therefore this is only for
cosmetic purposes. I'm very interested in hearing about your
own experience ( or someone you know), how long it takes to
heals, how painful the removal is, scarring, etc.
Thank you
I have had A LOT of experience with Mole Removal. I am pretty
much covered in them! I have had many removed and in my
experience it is a pretty easy process. If you are really
concerned with scaring you may want to go to a
dermatologist/plastic surgeon. I have had moles removed in
different ways. Large, deep ones some times need to be removed
and then stitched up, which will take alittle more time to heal
and can obviously cause scaring if you are prone to scars. They
always give me a shot of lidocaine (right around the mole area)
which is just a little pinch/burn and then usually slice it off
with a razor and either stitch it up or cauterize it. It can be
alittle sensitive for the first few days and you really need to
follow their care and cleaning instructions. Like anything it
takes a few days/weeks to heal and you will most likely have a
noticeable mark on your face while it is healing. It really is a
pretty easy procedure, just make sure you trust your
dermatologist AND you donUt have anywhere major to go the next
few weeks after. I believe you also need to be careful with sun
exposure, etc..
Hope that helps
Meg
If your moles are on the face, I think most dermatologists
would refer you to a plastic surgeon. I had a consultation with
Dr. Elizabeth Lee about my facial moles, and appreciated how
straightforward she was. Basically you're trading a mole for a
scar, which may be small, but still a scar. I decided to keep
the moles, for now
holy moley
I have had one mole removed for cosmetic reasons. I'm glad I did
it but I doubt I'll have more removed on my face (I'm rather
''moley'' or as my toddler says ''bumpy.'' ) The scar, while on the
side of my face, is evident and the hair that grew out of the
mole still grows in that spot. The recovery was pretty minor, I
wore a bandaid for a while. I've resigned myself to a more
topographically interesting face. Good luck with your decision
''Bumpy''
Do you have to remove these moles from your face? I had a mole
removed from my body. The doctor said it had to be removed to
see if it was cancerous. Turned out it was benign. It healed
properly, in the amount of time the doctor said it would, the
removal did not hurt, but I do have a scar. I regret not asking
around about scarring before I had it removed. You are smart
for doing this research first. I wish there had been a way to
test the mole first without removing it.
The scar is always there
I had a mole removed from the center of my forehead about 4 years
ago. It had never bothered me but after like eight little kids
made comments I thought ''you know kids never lie and if it's
bothering them there are probably adults who have issues with it
and just don't say anything because they are being polite.''
I had it done and two things happened. I got a bunch of very
positive comments about how beautiful my eyes were and how much
more noticeable they were. (Must have been pretty distracting
huh?) Then people FORGOT it was ever there! They'll come over and
see pictures and go ''You had a mole?'' And I'm like ''yeah for 30
yrs. Didn't we go to highschool together?'' Seriously. More than once.
Anyway it cost $150. It was outpatient surgery. Took about an
hour. Had to wear a little bandaid on it for about a week. I
ended up wearing it for longer because there was an indentation
that took about a month to fill in. Now it's completely flat and
there's one speck that's lighter than the rest of my forehead. If
you don't have a surgeon picked out and your interested you can
e-mail me and I'll give you the name of mine. She's in the city!
Good luck!
shelly
Feb 2004
I would like to have a mole removed from my face and am looking
for recommendations on Dr. Elizabeth Lee and Dr. Shahin
Javaheri, both in Berkeley. There were no recommendations for
this procedure or Dr. Javaheri on the website, and the only
posts for Dr. Lee were for different procedures. My husband
recently saw Dr. Javaheri for the removal of an abscess and
suggested seeing him, but I'd like more input from others. Has
anyone had a mole removed from either of these doctors (or any
others)? What was your experience?
Many thanks.
I would recommend Dr. Howard Lee in Pinole. He is a cosmetic
surgeon and removed a rather large mole from my daughter when she
was six. She is now thirteen. I was very concerned and did a
lot of research before choosing Dr. Lee. My daughter's mole was
under her nose, on her upper lip. I was concerned about
scarring. Dr. Lee did a great job.
Sarah
I know both Dr. Elizabeth Lee and Dr. Shahin Javaheri well,
both on a professional and personal basis. They are both
personable, extremely well trained and experienced. I am a
physician myself, and wouldn't hesitate to have either one of
them treat me. You should be sure to check with your
insurance to know who the will ''allow'' you to see.
Good luck to you.
Dec 2003
The nail salon in Montclair offers laser removal of moles for
$30. They put ''solution'' on the mole, let it sit on the skin,
then remove the mole with a laser.
Has anyone heard of this? Any safety concerns?
anon
A nail salon doing laser mole removal? As someone who had
melanoma, that does not sound safe at all, for a variety of
reasons. Please see a dermatologist.
Ellen
Please do not have anyone other than a dermatologist remove a
mole!! First, it's not always easy to tell if something is a
mole, freckle or other growth. Second, if it is a mole, only a
dermatologist can evaluate whether it should be removed. Even if
the dermatologist decides that it doesn't need to be removed,
the dermatologist will remove it for aesthetic reasons if you
want. However, a good dermatologist will always send a removed
mole to a lab for analysis, whether he or she thinks its
problematic or not. If you have any kind of skin growths (skin
tags, moles, keratoses etc.) you should be monitored by a
dermatologist. It's not a big deal. Generally, one visit a year
where the moles are examined visually is enough. I've had a lot
of moles and skin tags removed by a dermatologist over the last
30 years (most for aesthetic reasons). Some moles can be removed
simply by using a local anesthetic and cutting the mole from the
skin. Others, because of the kind of mole, are removed along
with surrounding skin and require a stitch or two. I've had them
done both ways--no scarring with the ones that are cut, and very
minimal scaring even with a few stitches.
I can recommend a dermatologist in Berkeley on Milvia--Cornelia
Pessoa, M.D. Very good.
anon
Having laser surgery done at a ''nail salon'' doesn't sound safe to
me and for only $30 . Are they qualified to do it? I have had
several treatments of laser hair removal done at the Laser Center
of Marin (415) 945-9314 and feel I can trust my face to them.
They have an office in Pinole also (Bay Area Laser Surgery Center
(510) 724-8282). Laser's can cause serious burns that can cause
scaring. The power of the laser is set depending on the skin
tone and pigmentation. I go all the way to Marin even though the
Pinole office would be much closer only because the machine over
there can deal with much darker skin.
Sarah
I recommended the Laser Center of Marin earlier. Added note: my
daughter had a rather large mole removed at the age of six by a
brilliant Cosmetic Sugeon, Dr. Howard Lee in Pinole (510)
724-1650. I did a lot of research and he was recommended over
and over again. I was worried about scaring because the mole was
under her nose on her upper lip and in a very visable spot. My
daughter is now 13 and has a minimal scar which will hopefully
completely disappear by the time she is an adult.
Sarah
From my experience, I think anything involving a true mole
should be done by a dermatologist, not a salon. If it was a sun
spot or some similar pigment discoloration, that wouldn't seem
so scary b/c dermatologists use lasers to take off those. But
whenever I have had a real mole removed, it involves a scalpel
because they go beneath the skin. Maybe I am paranoid b/c I
know people who have had melanoma but I do not mess around when
it comes to moles.
Elizabeth
Feb 2003
Can anybody recommend a dermatologist in SF (the
website listings are all for East Bay docs)? The 3 docs I'm
considering (covered by my plan) are:
Beverly Epstein,
Marie Jhin,
Lucia Tuffanelli
Thanks!
Past Due for Mole Check
Recommendations received (dermatologists):
Beverly Epstein
Marie Jhin
Lucia Tuffanelli
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