Went abroad for check up many times, found moles, returned home and found cancer

(Dan Tri) - A 40-year-old male patient had a mole with black spots on his face. He went abroad many times for medical examination and had the mole burned with laser, but it kept recurring and getting bigger.

On August 7, Dr. Nguyen Huu Quang, Deputy Head of the Department of Plastic Surgery and Rehabilitation, Central Dermatology Hospital, said that recently, the hospital has received many patients with mole-like lesions, diverse in morphology, unclear lesion edges, ulcers and recurrence after many laser treatments.

Like the case of a 40-year-old male patient who came to the hospital on July 23 due to black, patchy lesions and ulcers on his face.

The male patient said that he had been examined many times at a hospital abroad and was diagnosed with a mole. He had treated it with laser burning, but the lesion did not completely disappear and recurred.

"At first, the patient had a black mole-like lesion with an initial size of about 2-3mm on the face, which changed over time. After laser treatment, the size gradually increased, the color was uneven, ulcerated, and infiltrated the subcutaneous tissue," said Dr. Quang.

After examination, blood test, ultrasound, dermoscopy - a specific test in dermatology and tumor biopsy, the patient was diagnosed with recurrent basal cell carcinoma in the left cheek area.

Doctors performed Mohs surgery to control the cancer cells removed from the body and save healthy skin. After 1 week of treatment, the surgical wound was stable and the patient was discharged from the hospital.

The initial lesions of basal cell carcinoma are quite similar to moles, so many people confuse them (Photo: Doctor provided).

According to Dr. Quang, the initial lesions of basal cell carcinoma are quite similar to moles, so people can confuse and ignore the easily recognizable signs.

Basal cell carcinoma often appears on the face and increases in size over time. However, the rate of patients cured by Mohs surgery is quite high (over 90% according to some studies and synthesis at the Hospital) if diagnosed correctly and treated promptly.

Signs of basal cell carcinoma are raised, black lesions on the skin surface and face, which increase in size and change color over time.

"If the above signs appear on the skin, people should go to specialized medical facilities for examination and treatment to avoid possible unfortunate consequences," Dr. Quang advised.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/suc-khoe/di-kham-nhieu-lan-o-nuoc-ngoai-la-not-ruoi-ve-nuoc-phat-hien-ung-thu-20250807101023134.htm