From InteliHealth: A skin tag is a soft, skin-colored growth that hangs from the surface of the skin on a thin piece of tissue called a stalk. Its medical name is acrochordon. Skin tags are not skin cancer and cannot turn into skin cancer.
Well, that last bit is a relief. ;)
Here's a "lovely" image from MedlinePlus:
The ones I have frozen off didn't have as skinny a neck on them, though... they looked like lumpy moles. Since we're supposed to be careful about strange moles, and the couple I had seemed to be getting bigger, and were getting irritated by my clothing, I asked the doc about them. He said they were skin tags, and nothing to worry about them. He then froze them off. (Gee, what a pleasant experience. :P ) For some reason, they came back as moles.
They're probably nothing to worry about... they were probably just a combination mole & skin tag before being frozen, and so the skin that grew back had the extra mole pigmentation. Still, it's not nice knowing your doctor made funny faces, and tried to get you an appointment with a dermatologist as soon as possible. :P
11 comments:
Ahhh...those things. Just never knew they were called anything in particular (I always thought they were just some weird sort of mole).
-Paulina
My day was not wasted, I enlightened someone. ;)
I had a friend tho had a ton of these skin tags on her neck. She went to get them removed and found out they were being caused by having Diabetes. Type 2? Not sure exactly which...
How strange! Thanks for the tip. The ones I had I've had all my life, and my doctor has never said anything about my blood sugar levels, so I should be okay. (I do need to lose some weight, though.)
you could have pcos if u have weight around your tummy n your periods are irregualar n others pls go to your doc plus having skin tags also are also a systom of sugar problem as well eg. diabetes.
Fascinating... thanks for the info! (I don't have a lot of skin tags, so I think I'm okay.)
hmm, you know no one has ever told me that what I have might very well be a skin tag since it looks more like a mole. But I am planning on seeing a doctor about it to get it removed and to find out what it is since I have just noticed that it is now slightly hard when only a few days ago the skin was soft to touch.
If the skin got dry, that could make it hard... but I feel you can't be too careful with mole-like things. Definitely be on the safe side and have a trained professional make the diagnosis. ;)
Hello I'm 16 and i have a skin tag in my chest area (got it this yr), its really embarrassing, I had to find a bathing suit that wouldnt show it, so my question is: I should go see a dermatologist, right? because I showed my doctor and she didn't do anything about it, just told me it would cost a lot of $ to get it removed? or can i remove it myself with the freeze thing, where can i get it?
I'm not a doctor, so take this with a grain of salt... my mom removed hers herself by tying a piece of string/thread tight around the bottom. Cut off from the blood supply, it dried up and fell off in a few days.
I used to have a couple of small ones that were in my armpits... when I started shaving at puberty, the razor cut them off. I recommend the tying method, though, because they do bleed a bunch.
I think they sell single-use freezing things for warts, so you could try checking in the wart removal section of your drug store.
And remember, I'm not a doctor. ;)
thanks for the advise :)
i might try the tie thing. my mother said to cut it off, but i'm a big baby and just cant do that to myself, so maybe i'll go see a dermatologist...
sincerely,
the 16 yr old
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