My Experience with Precancerous Moles

⚠️ Warning: Graphic Images Included

If you’ve followed me for a while now, you’ve probably heard me talk about my experience with precancerous moles. I get questions about it all the time, so I wanted to put my entire story in one place in hopes that it helps someone else.

Honestly, if sharing my experience gets even one person to schedule a skin check or stop using tanning beds, it’s worth it.

How It All Started

Let’s rewind back to high school.

Like many teenage girls, I thought being tan was the coolest thing ever. Before my junior prom, I signed up for tanning at a local gym and started hitting the tanning beds multiple times a week.

And when I say multiple times a week, I mean multiple times a week.

Looking back, I was tanning way more than I should have been and for way longer than I should have been. On top of that, I rarely wore sunscreen because I genuinely thought getting tan was healthy and looked better.

Fast forward to my senior year and I started noticing new moles popping up on my chest, stomach, breasts, and back. I didn’t think much of it because I’ve always had moles.

A few months later, I had the opportunity to shadow a family friend who happened to be a dermatologist. At the time, I thought I wanted to become a dermatologist myself, so I spent two days following him around and learning about skin cancer, melanoma, and all kinds of skin conditions.

After hearing about my tanning bed history and the fact that I basically lived in SPF 5 tanning oil every summer, he looked at me and said, “You should probably get a skin check.”

Thank goodness he did!

My First Skin Check

In the spring of 2016, I had my very first full body skin check.

He found a mole on my chest that he wanted to biopsy, so he shaved it off and sent it to pathology.

About a week later, I got the call.

It came back moderately dysplastic.

At the time, I didn’t really understand what that meant. I just knew it wasn’t normal and that I needed to come back in six months for another skin check.

Thankfully, he got clear margins and didn’t need to remove any additional tissue.

Where I Messed Up

Well… I didn’t go back in 6 months, I completely spaced it. I went off to college over five hours away and life got busy.

Six months turned into eighteen months.

Eventually, I noticed a few moles that looked different, which finally convinced me to schedule another appointment.

Sure enough, a few more moles were biopsied.

Moderately dysplastic.

Again.

Then it happened again.

And again.

For the next few years, my routine looked something like this:

• Skin checks every six months
• Multiple biopsies
• More moderately dysplastic moles

At that point, it almost felt normal.

The Scary Part

My dermatologist had been keeping an eye on three larger moles on my breast for a couple of years.

Every appointment they looked a little bigger, a little darker & a little more concerning.

Finally, in July of 2021, we decided it was time to remove the largest one.

When the pathology report came back, it was classified as severely dysplastic.

One degree away from melanoma.

I remember feeling sick to my stomach.

Because of those results, I ended up having all three removed and surgically excised down to the fat layer to make sure every abnormal precancerous cell was gone.

Since then, I’ve had more moderately dysplastic moles removed and another severely dysplastic mole excised as well.

Thankfully, every single one has been caught before turning into melanoma.

But I won’t lie, it has still been emotionally exhausting to have to go through this! I am so grateful though that it has never been melanoma!

What This Experience Has Taught Me

Today, I have more than a dozen scars scattered across my body from biopsies and excisions.

And if I could go back and tell my younger self one thing, it would be this: The tan was NOT worth it. Not for prom, not for a vacation, not for anything! I would do anything to go back in time and not step foot into that tanning bed.

I know when you’re young it’s easy to think, “That’ll never happen to me.”

Trust me, I used to think the same thing.

Until it did.

Please Learn From My Mistakes

Wear sunscreen. Skip the tanning beds. Get the skin check. Pay attention to changes in your moles. 

Melanoma is no joke.

I truly believe God allows us to walk through things for a reason, and if sharing my experience helps someone catch something early or avoid making the same mistakes I made, then these scars have a purpose.

The ABCDEs of Melanoma

When you’re checking your own moles, keep an eye out for:

A: Asymmetry

B: Border irregularities

C: Color changes or multiple colors

D: Diameter larger than a pencil eraser

E: Evolving or changing over time

Get Your Skin Checked!

Your skin is your body’s largest organ, and taking care of it matters.

If you’ve never had a skin check before, let this be your sign to schedule one.

It might give you peace of mind or it might even help you catch something early.

Either way, it’s worth it!

Love you guys, and thank you for taking the time to read my story.

xoxo, Bailey