We’re going on a hi-tech mole hunt

ALASDAIR REISNER tries out a service to detect early signs of skin cancer and remove worrying spots on the same day

launched a mole mapping and removal service to diagnose potentially cancerous moles at the earliest possible stage. The screening takes around 30 minutes and uses a mole imaging machine to map every mole on the patient’s body and provide a “point-in-time” photographic record. All body screenings are analysed by an expert dermatologist, who will then refer patients with potentially cancerous moles to a consultant dermatologist for treatment on the same day.

After running through my medical history, Dr Mahto carried out an examination to look at each mole. I learned that I have a relatively unusual array of moles in terms of their number and varying sizes. During the examination, a dermatoscope is used to illuminate and magnify the structures in the skin, which are otherwise invisible to the human eye. This allows the dermatologist to identify any suspicious structures, perhaps containing the blood vessels which are seen in certain skin and mole cancers. The aim is to detect skin cancers more quickly and reduce the number of unnecessary skin excisions.

Dr Mahto said there was nothing that should currently give me cause for concern. Yet knowing where I am today was