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Many people have moles and skin tags on their bodies. Take it easy, both are not dangerous or painful, really. Both of them can also be eliminated after you see a dermatologist. After all, it's also relatively small. Then, what is the difference between a mole and a skin tag? Check it out here!
What is a mole?
Moles usually grow on the skin that are brown or black in color. Moles can appear anywhere on the skin. Moles are formed because the skin cells in the body instead of growing spread but grow in piles and clusters. These cells are called melanocyte cells which have pigments, namely the body's dyes.
Each of these melanocyte cells that grow accumulate which eventually gives a lot of pigment at a certain point, and the skin looks brown or black spots. In some people, the color of the mole can also change naturally after exposure to the sun, during adolescence, and during pregnancy.
Some moles can change slowly, others may not change at all since they appeared.
If you see any signs of change in a mole, there are a few important things you need to pay attention to. Because, moles can be a forerunner to the growth of cancer. This is one of the differences between a mole and a skin tag. However, if nothing changes, then you don't need to worry.
Here are important signs of a mole that could be cancer:
- Asymmetry. Half a mole is asymmetrical in shape as half of it.
- Limit. Limit or the edge of the mole is rough, fuzzy, and irregular.
- Color. The color of the mole is not the same across the surface.
- Diameter. The diameter of a mole is larger than the diameter of a pencil eraser
- Stand out. A mole appears to be raised or protruding from the skin.
If these five signs happen to you, you should immediately check with a dermatologist.
If the dermatologist finds that the mole needs further examination or removal, the doctor will perform a biopsy of the mole first. A biopsy is the process of taking a small tissue sample from a mole to be examined.
The mole tissue sample will then be examined under a microscope. If it is cancerous, the doctor will remove the entire mole by cutting the entire mole off to the edge of the normal skin around the mole. This is to prevent the spread of cancer cells. Then the doctor will stitch up the cut wound.
What is a skin tag?
Skin tags in medical language are called acrochordons. Skin tags are lumps of fine skin tissue that hang on the skin and have connecting rods. Skin tags are sometimes referred to as growing flesh, but this condition is harmless and also not a sign of a serious skin problem.
The skin tag initially looks like a small protrusion. Over time the skin tag grows to become like a piece of skin attached to the surface of the skin by a small sprig. Skin tags are usually colored like skin. This skin tag protrusion is also easy to shake, not stiff. Skin tags are painless, but if you rub too much or shake them they may still get irritated.
Skin tags are not found on all parts of the body. It's the difference between a mole and a skin tag that is easy to see. Usually skin tags are found on the neck, chest, back, armpits, under the breasts, in the groin area, or in the genital area.
Reporting from the Harvard Medical School page, skin tags are not skin cancer and cannot turn into skin cancer such as moles.
Skin tags appear most often in women, as weight gain increases the possibility of developing skin tags. In addition, heredity also affects a person who can have skin tags from parents.
If your skin tags interfere with daily activities, you can consult a doctor to remove them. Doctors usually remove the skin tags with sharp scissors or a sharp knife. There are also those who do it by freezing and burning the stem, but this is done less frequently.
Bleeding when taking the skin tag will then be stopped with chemical treatment (aluminum chloride) or electrically (cauterization).
Removal of this skin tag is related to cosmetic problems only, but it is not really a surgery that is needed for health problems.
