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Pigment growing in benign scar site
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Pigment growing in benign scar site

› Forums › Pigment growing in benign scar site

  • Post
    • November 14, 2020 at 1:58 am
    MMH
    Participant
      Hi all. I had a .6mm removed 2 years ago which brought me to this forum. I see my dermatologist routinely ever since and about 6 months ago had a mole removed from my shoulder that came back benign. I now notice that there is pigment in the scar site, and o can only assume it is new and not left over because it is on the back of my shoulder so I do not see it each day. I of course am concerned. Any experience with pigment appearing after a removal?

      Thank you for any information.

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    • Replies
        • November 14, 2020 at 3:48 am
        JudiAU
        Participant
          I don’t think it is uncommon for this to occur. I have had a few moles have small regrowth. Usually there are a few cells left during removal, pathology was fine, and they don’t need a WLE.
          • November 14, 2020 at 6:13 am
          MelMel
          Participant
            You may find the information on the following site to be of interest.

            https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10235379/

            Melanie

              • November 15, 2020 at 12:51 am
              Treadlightly
              Participant
                Hi MMH,

                I am 10 years NED, and had a full-thickness skin graft after a WLE for an Acral Lentiginous melanoma lesion on my heel.

                In the post-op period, following my healing, I noticed more than one small dark spot in the scar tissue on the perimeter of my graft. For the first one I found, my doctor removed it with a punch biopsy. It came back benign. I have had a couple more since then, but my doctors have never even mentioned them during my regular check-ups.

                I have seen and responded to other posts on this forum over the years regarding this phenomenon. It apparently is quite common for these discolorations to occur within scar tissue.

                I would recommend that you show it to your doctor, but in the meantime, you should rest assured that it is most-likely not harmful.

                Take care,
                Mark (2A)

                • November 15, 2020 at 2:36 am
                Mark_DC
                Participant
                  Melanie’s paper is helpful and consistent with Mark’s experience. I had weird stuff on my skin graft – red pimples and kind of lumps but my doctor was not really sure what they were. This happened at the same time as a recurrence. But the pimples on the skin graft resolved and I think were all benign. I am sorry this is stressful, but there is a good chance all will be fine.
                  Good luck Mark
                • November 17, 2020 at 3:19 pm
                MMH
                Participant
                  Thank you all for this very helpful information. I really appreciate hearing everyone’s personal experience, as it makes waiting for my upcoming derm appointment more bearable. Thank you again, and I hope you are all staying ok mentally and physically during this challenging time.
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