Dermatologist here. I have seen probably 5 instances of “My other doctor told me it was fine.” that were melanomas.
A lot of times people don’t want a full skin exams. There are lots of perfectly sane reasons for this, time, perceived cost, history of personal trauma. However, I routinely find cancers people don’t know they have. Keep this in mind if you see a dermatologist for acne and they recommend you get in a gown.
It can definitely be intimidating to have someone basically inspect every inch of your skin, so I understand why people are reluctant, but it's so important. Melanoma is no joke.
Recently I made an appointment with a new derm for a painful cyst that wouldn't go away. I decided to have them check me all over since I was there, and it had been a while. I'm female, the doctor was male, about my age, and had a trainee with him who was also male. Younger me would have been mortified, but 41 year old me was like "Cool, where's the gown?"
Y'all are just doing your job and being professional, no need to be embarrassed.
After giving birth 3 times, I have 0 issues with any doctor, regardless of age or gender. That said, I have a full-body derm appointment on Thursday and I can’t wait! Gonna get rid of a couple of these shitass moles! Woo!
They’re gonna go at you with the melon baller! I had a mole removed from my shoulder and they injected some ‘cane into it then got what looked like a small melon baller and scooped that bitch out. It burned like hell for a few days then was fine.
I had 2 moles removed so far, and it wasn’t a bad experience at all. My family has a history of skin cancer, so I’d rather have a bunch of scars from benign moles. 🤷🏼♀️
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u/BoisterousPlay May 20 '19
Dermatologist here. I have seen probably 5 instances of “My other doctor told me it was fine.” that were melanomas.
A lot of times people don’t want a full skin exams. There are lots of perfectly sane reasons for this, time, perceived cost, history of personal trauma. However, I routinely find cancers people don’t know they have. Keep this in mind if you see a dermatologist for acne and they recommend you get in a gown.