Do Moles Come Back After Excision?

Question

I've had three mildly atypical moles removed by excision surgery. Margins clear. Just wondering, is it often that moles come back? I understand they come back from a shave biopsy but for excision surgeries that went down to the fat tissue are they likely to come back under the scar? Thank you.

Raffy Karamanoukian, MD, FACS · Answer

Once a mole is surgically excised with positive margins, it is unlikely to return.  However, if it does return, a prompt visit to your surgeon is warranted.

Sam Naficy, MD, FACS · Answer

If a lesion is completely surgically excised and the margins were confirmed to be clear, the lesion should not return.

David Goldberg, MD · Answer

Once cut out and shown to be clear on a pathology examination, such surgically removed moles are unlikely to return.

Mitchell Schwartz, MD - Account Suspended · Answer

Excisional surgeries of moles with microscopically clear margins are very unlikely to recur. Nothing is 100% but this is close. BTW, in my office we will observe the area after the initial shave biopsy of a mildly atypical moles. If any pigmentation recurs in the biopsy site in the future, a very small excision is done (often with a small punch biopsy tool) for a minimal scar.

F. Victor Rueckl, MD (in memoriam) · Answer

First, done in entirety, moles don't come back from shave biopsies - and it removes the least amount of skin needed. No matter the type of excision, sometimes you'll be left with a small edge that may not have been entirely removed, but for an entire mole to return, I'd say less than 3%.

Do Moles Come Back After Excision?

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