Ask a Skin Doctor: Mole Recurrence
Dear Doctor
I had two moles removed on my cheek. I cleaned the wound and covered it with a bandaid for 2 weeks after the removal.
When I took the bandaid off there was no scar at all and then about a couple weeks later scars started forming and now I have two red circular scars that were not there originally after I took the bandaids off why is that?
Did I do something wrong?
Dear Patient
Moles can recur or grow back after they are removed if some cells are left in the skin.
The rate of recurrence depends on the removal technique that was used (e.g. the shave biopsy method) and the aggressiveness of the mole.
I suggest that you go for an examination by the doctor who removed the moles because it seems that you may require a full depth surgical excision of the lesions and followup appointments to monitor them.
However, keep in mind that the surgical excision method will leave a larger scar since it will need stitches to close the wound.
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