How Well Do You Know Your SPOTS?

By Roberta F. Palestine, M.D

Recently a woman in her 30’s came to see me because she had noticed a tiny new dark spot on her cheek.  It was only 1 mm, about the size of blackhead, but was darker than the rest of her freckles and moles. Because it was new and different from the rest, I removed it and sent it to the lab to be examined under the microscope. The report came back malignant melanoma. Fortunately, it was very superficial in depth as well as being very small in diameter, and there is an excellent chance that this woman is cured of a potentially fatal cancer because she noticed a change and took care of it right away.

Brown spots, red spots, pink spots, yellow spots – which are normal and which are not?  Which are potentially serious or dangerous? 

Body mapping, or a total skin exam, should be part of everyone’s yearly physical exam.  The skin is the largest organ in the body, and since it is visible and easy to examine, even problems such as skin cancer are usually curable when caught early.  The incidence of skin cancer has reached epidemic proportions in this country over the past several years.  The good news is that early detection and treatment can cure most people. 

 A total skin exam involves looking at the skin from head to toe, including hard to see areas.  This should be performed by a board-certified dermatologist annually, and skin self-exams should be done monthly. Mirrors can help with visualizing some areas of the body, and a family member or friend can help examine the scalp.  Some precancerous or suspicious lesions can occur in areas that you cannot readily see yourself.  An important part of the dermatologic exam involves documenting any lesion that needs to be monitored or removed, either on a body diagram or with photographs.  This serves as a baseline for future monitoring.  Adults as well as children with an inherited tendency toward irregular skin lesions benefit from this type of monitoring.

 Body mapping (total skin exam)  not only is useful to document suspicious lesions, but also serves as a visual documentation for any other skin conditions to be addressed, such as rashes or other medical skin conditions,  or areas that would benefit from cosmetic procedures.

 Put a yearly body check on your health agenda – remember, it can save your life!