Advice on mole removal

[Leo85]

The best way to remove a mole is to heat up some sort of metal pin, or nail with a lighter. Just heat up the end for maybe a minute and quickly stick it on the mole. It sounds painful, but it's not. Depending on the size of the mole, if you press too lightly, a layer of skin will come off, but it still may be there, just not as visible. Then you just do it again. Maybe practice first on smaller ones on your leg. Trust me. This is the best and quickest way, I guess other than spending money on laser treatment. You will be so much happier once its gone. I've done some on my legs, arms, and even face.

 

[Steve]

The best way to remove a mole is to heat up some sort of metal pin, or nail with a lighter. Just heat up the end for maybe a minute and quickly stick it on the mole. It sounds painful, but it's not. Depending on the size of the mole, if you press too lightly, a layer of skin will come off, but it still may be there, just not as visible. Then you just do it again. Maybe practice first on smaller ones on your leg. Trust me. This is the best and quickest way, I guess other than spending money on laser treatment. You will be so much happier once its gone. I've done some on my legs, arms, and even face.

That's hard-core. Do you take a shot of whiskey first? :)

 

[Jem Oz]

Thanks for all the advice. Given that the message seems to be: the mole has to go, I'm just going to pay $55 and have a doc do it. It's in a prominent spot and I don't want to spend weeks whittling it down. They'll even throw in a free biopsy. I'm a bit bummed the progesterone/melanon/vit A/E route didn't yield any results. Speaks to how shoddy my metabolism must be at the mo.

 

[Steve]

Thanks for all the advice. Given that the message seems to be: the mole has to go, I'm just going to pay $55 and have a doc do it. It's in a prominent spot and I don't want to spend weeks whittling it down. They'll even throw in a free biopsy. I'm a bit bummed the progesterone/melanon/vit A/E route didn't yield any results. Speaks to how shoddy my metabolism must be at the mo.

I've either read or heard Ray Peat mention that removing a mole may just lead to more moles appearing on your body after removal. I'm not sure why that happens, but you may want to look into it.

 

[Leo85]

That's hard-core. Do you take a shot of whiskey first? :)

Haha. It is a bit hardcore, but it works, though. And you never have to worry about it again. It's really not as bad as it seems. If you really want it gone, and not waste your money and time, this is the best way. And no extra moles appear.

 

[Jem Oz]

I've either read or heard Ray Peat mention that removing a mole may just lead to more moles appearing on your body after removal. I'm not sure why that happens, but you may want to look into it.

Yeh I can imagine it's not the best approach. I wonder though if cutting it off is so different to the other approaches on this thread, which still center around getting rid of the mole.

Either way, doing nothing is also risky, as per this RP quote:

"I’ve always been very cautious about moles, since I think they have the potential to degenerate into metastatic cancer."

 

[Leo85]

Yeh I can imagine it's not the best approach. I wonder though if cutting it off is so different to the other approaches on this thread, which still center around getting rid of the mole.

Either way, doing nothing is also risky, as per this RP quote:

"I’ve always been very cautious about moles, since I think they have the potential to degenerate into metastatic cancer."

I would think if you cut it, you're risking of getting a deep scar like an indent by taking away too many layers of skin. Plus that sounds more vicious than a small burn. Burning it would be similar to freezing a wart.

 

[Jem Oz]

As i'm rather confused about best approach, I've emailed Ray. Hopefully he'll get a chance to respond. The mole growth has been very minimal, so surely I've got a bit of time on my side.

 

[tankasnowgod]

Does anyone have experience of mole removal?

Yep. I did it myself with iodine-

I recently got rid of a raised mole. I used iodine, Lugol's solution 2%. It took about 3 weeks total. I applied iodine once or twice a day. Scabbed over after about 10 days. Repeated the iodine after it healed a bit, maybe another five days. When it was peeling, I cut most of it off with a nail clipper.

The mole was dark and nasty, now, completely gone. The skin around the mole is a little darker now, but completely smooth. Overall, great success.

Topical iodine works really well for this, but it is a process and it does irritate the skin when you do it. I've also faded scars with iodine. So, I wouldn't do it in really sensitive areas, or for something really minor, like a small skin tag.

I had warts burned off when I was a kid. Various uses of liquid nitrogen, acid taped over it, and one that was eventually "dug out." I eventually faded that scar with iodine, too.

 

[Jem Oz]

Ray got back to me within a day (staggering to think of the number of people this man has helped). His response is reassuring, and reiterates what's been said on this and other threads (i'll post it in email depository as well):

"I’ve seen dozens of very abnormal moles shrink and fall off in a few days when hypothroidism was corrected. (it’s interesting to make notes on the colors and location; I’ve found that they can change positions in an hour or two)."

I'm going to take a breath, fix my stressed out sub par metabolism, and tell the surgeon to lower the scalpel.

 

[Elderflower j58]

View attachment 13060 View attachment 13059 I am very impressed with results so far ,
I know it's not a great pic but nough to see big improvement.
Before it was like a leather button,completely flat now and disapearing.

@Jem Oz

 

[hierundjetzt]

Yep. I did it myself with iodine-



I had warts burned off when I was a kid. Various uses of liquid nitrogen, acid taped over it, and one that was eventually "dug out." I eventually faded that scar with iodine, too.

Interesting. What was your protocol for fading the scar out with iodine? Just apply a drop to it each day?

 

[LeeLemonoil]

have you looked into those devices?

Amazon product ASIN B083978R92
Amazon product ASIN B08CV3TPW2

 

[Pistachio]

Appreciate any input on this. Have a mole on my nose, it's been there forever. Similar colour to my skin, so it's never bothered me. After a sunburn at the end of last year, it went very dark, which made me notice it more. I thought it had increased in size (nothing crazy). The dark skin peeled away and it returned to its normal colour.

Anyway, I was at the doc, and asked him to take a look. He said the colours looked "chaotic" and given that it had possibly grown, he strongly recommended cutting it off. (no great surprise).

I spent the ensuing 6 weeks doing this: daily application of melanon, a drop of estroban, and then in the afternoon, a drop of cortinon, plus 2 drops of oral cortinon.

After 6 weeks, the mole and surrounding skin feel incredibly smooth, but otherwise, there is no change. It's still a little chaotic in colour, and it hasn't shrunk.

So my question is: should I get it removed? I believe I am somewhat hypothyroid at the moment, and am addressing that. Perhaps that is why the supplements didn't have more of an impact. The reason it's on my mind is I remember the Ray Peat quote where he said he's always been very cautious around moles, given their potential to metastisize.

As imperfect as the slice and dice thinking is, I'm wondering if in this instance it's the lesser of two evils? Does anyone have experience of mole removal?

Any advice greatly appreciated.

To get rid of a mole/wart, you scratch the entire surface of the mole with something pointy, like a pin. You want to scratch it to the point when it starts to bleed a little. Prepare some baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) and put enough water in it that it becomes a paste. Take a blob of this paste and place it on the mole and hold it there with some pressure for about 20-30 minutes (you should feel a bit of stinging, which you want. If it doesn't sting, you haven't scratched enough). After a few days, the mole will scab over and die. For bigger moles, you might need to do this procedure more than once, but it definitely works, on flat or raised moles.

All the best.

 

[Jem Oz]

Can someone explain to me the difference between these home remedies and getting the doc to cut it off? Don't they achieve the same outcome?

 

[Pistachio]

Can someone explain to me the difference between these home remedies and getting the doc to cut it off? Don't they achieve the same outcome?

If the doctors laser it off, it tends to leave more scarring. I find the sodium bicarbonate method leaves less of a mark. I've had both done and can attest personally to this. Either way, you could use a derma roller to lessen any scarring.

To answer your question, yes, they both achieve the same effect.

 

[Jem Oz]

If they laser it off, it tends to leave more scarring. I find the sodium bicarbonate method leaves less of a mark. I've had both done and can attest personally to this. Either way, you could use a derma roller to lessen any scarring.

Thanks for response. The doc was actually intending to slice it off, and said there'd be minimal scarring. I like the thought of getting it gone in one quick gesture rather than spending weeks/months chipping away. But confused whether I should remove it, or improve my metabolism and then try the prog/dhea/vit e/vit a/melanon route again.

 

[Pistachio]

Thanks for response. The doc was actually intending to slice it off, and said there'd be minimal scarring. I like the thought of getting it gone in one quick gesture rather than spending weeks/months chipping away. But confused whether I should remove it, or improve my metabolism and then try the prog/dhea/vit e/vit a/melanon route again.

When they "slice" it, they don't just cut around the mole. They actually create more of a diamond shaped-cut, which leaves a line scar. But it depends on how big it is, I guess.

 

[Pistachio]

My advice:

Sodium bicarbonate any moles and derma roll the wounds once the scabs have come off. Forget the dermatologists.

 

[LeeLemonoil]

When they "slice" it, they don't just cut around the mole. They actually create more of a diamond shaped-cut, which leaves a line scar. But it depends on how big it is, I guess.

That’s true. Seek out another derm. They’d need a co2-laser or a Yag- or neodym bssed laser. Minimum scarring