Skin Cancer, Nonmelanoma: When To Call A Doctor

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When To Call a Doctor

Call your doctor if you have an irritated or irregular skin growth. This includes any:

• Firm, pearly bump with tiny blood vessels in a spiderlike appearance (telangiectasias).
• Red, tender, flat spot that bleeds easily.
• Small, fleshy bump with a smooth, pearly appearance, often with a depressed center.
• Smooth, shiny bump that may look like a mole or cyst.
• Patch of skin, especially on the face, that looks like a scar and is firm to the touch.
• Bump that itches, bleeds, crusts over, and then repeats the cycle and has not healed in 3 weeks.
• Change in a wart or a mole, including a change in size, shape, or color.
• Area of normal skin that quickly changes shape or appearance.

Be sure to show your doctor any skin growths that concern you so that they can be evaluated and treated if necessary.

Watchful Waiting

Watchful waiting, or surveillance, is a period of time during which you and your doctor observe your symptoms or condition without using medical treatment. Watchful waiting is not appropriate if you suspect that you have nonmelanoma skin cancer. The earlier skin cancer is detected, the sooner it can be effectively treated.

Who To See

Health professionals who can examine and diagnose a suspicious skin growth include:

• Family medicine physicians.
• Dermatologists.
• Nurse practitioners.
• Physician assistants.
• Internists.
• Pediatricians.

Health professionals who can remove a large skin growth or one in a noticeable area while minimizing scars that may result from surgery include:

• Dermatologists.
• Plastic or reconstructive surgeons.
• General surgeons.

To prepare for your appointment, see the topic Making the Most of Your Appointment.

Last updated:	October 14, 2008
Author:	Bets Davis, MFA
Reviewed By:	Kathleen Romito, MD - Family Medicine, Alexander H. Murray, MD, FRCPC - Dermatology
Editors:	Susan Van Houten, RN, BSN, MBA, Pat Truman, MATC