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Home / Dermatology / Mole Mapping

Mole Mapping Guide: Everything You Need to Know

If you are at higher risk for skin cancer because of certain factors (history of a bad sunburn, a large number of moles, personal or family history of skin cancer, etc.) you may want to see your doctor and get advice on what precautions you could take including if mole mapping would be helpful for you.


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In this guide we’ll explain:

  • What is Mole Mapping?
  • What Are the Benefits of a Mole Map?
  • How Much Does Mole Mapping Cost and What to Expect?
  • Should You Get a Mole Map?
  • Can You “Mole Map” Yourself with Your Phone?

What is Mole Mapping?

Mole mapping (body mole map/molemap) is a clinical process, where a nurse or doctor uses a purpose-built device to digitally photograph skin moles and other lesions.

Guide on mole mapping

The photos taken are often in high resolution which lets a trained professional such as a dermatologist get a magnified view of a mole or mark on the skin. Specialised lighting may help the professional see additional structures in the lesion.

The digital mole map photos can then be stored for later viewing to see if any moles or marks have changed.

What Are the Benefits of a Mole Map?

Skin cancers, including melanoma, are difficult to diagnose. A change in a lesion is an important sign that the lesion should be examined further.

Mole Mapping benefits:

  • Provides a documented history of your moles and lesions.
  • Can be helpful in determining skin changes based on the previous record.
  • Critical lesions could be removed at an earlier stage based on the recommendation from a dermatologist.
  • Dermoscopy photos (magnified digital photos), often used in mole mapping, provide more information for the trained professional than regular digital photos.
  • If mole mapping is done as part of a full-body medical skin examination it may be possible for some concerning lesions to be identified even if the patient didn’t think they were suspicious.

Talk to your doctor about mole mapping

A mole map can, therefore, help a professional document the history of your moles and lesions to see if any lesions change in the future. So in essence, this photographic record helps remove some of the worries about missing any future skin changes.

The procedure may also help reduce scars from having moles removed preemptively, as they can be closely monitored instead. That said, it is important that you always get any lesion removed if your physician recommends that course of action.

A mole map procedure is often performed as part of a full-body clinical skin examination as many lesions that don’t catch the attention of a patient may trigger the concern of a healthcare professional.

Magnified digital photography, also known as digital dermoscopy, is often used in mole mapping procedures.

Dermoscopy photos contain a lot more information than normal digital photos, which can help a dermatologist assess moles without seeing the patient in person. This may increase the assessment efficiency of a dermatologist or another skin cancer trained professional in that they can assess more lesions in this manner.

Mole map photos

If you contact a mole map provider be sure to ask if any specialist is reviewing the magnified mole map photos.

After your initial mole map, you may be recommended to regularly get your moles mapped in the clinic to catch any changes over time. As these check-ups will require work from at least a specialised nurse, there are recurrent costs involved with ongoing visits to a clinic.

When thinking about getting your moles mapped, it’s important to be aware of the following:

  • Over 70% of melanomas in adults appear as new moles or marks on the skin, rather than as changes to existing lesions.
  • Don’t just keep an eye on moles, freckles and other marks that are mapped in the clinic.
  • If you are over 35 years old, it is less common to develop new moles and you should be aware of any new lesions.

READ MORE ABOUT:

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How Much Does Mole Mapping Cost and What to Expect?

Mole mapping is often conducted by a nurse specialised in mole mapping. In many clinics the process is overseen by a dermatologist or a skin cancer trained doctor, who will take clinical responsibility. If there is a doctor involved the costs will be higher as you will get a further assessment of your moles.

Mole mapping price

The cost of the procedure will depend on whether you are just looking to get one lesion checked or if you are looking to get many moles mapped. Repeat-visits may come at a discount in comparison to a first-time visit.

All things taken into account, the procedure normally costs between US$100 – US$400.

Mole mapping is usually not covered by universal healthcare systems such as the NHS in the UK, bulk-billing in Australia or your insurance plan if you are in the US. If you are in doubt you can of course check with the clinic to find out if any costs are covered.

Examples of clinics in the UK that offer mole mapping:

  • The Cadogan Clinic
  • Centennial Medical Care

Should You Get a Mole Map?

There are no official guidelines as to who should get their moles mapped. It may come down to financial considerations as it does require a small investment to get a mole map.

Those at a high-risk of melanoma due to a family history or who have used tanning beds extensively may consider making the investment – Especially those who have too many moles to keep track of.

Mole mapping could be recommended for individuals who have:

  • More than 50 moles
  • Many atypical and unusual moles (moles that are large or have a mixture of colors, unusual shape or irregular borders)
  • Previous personal or family history of melanoma
  • Skin that has been once or more times severely sunburned

Please consider that the normal first-stop with any health concern is your family physician. If you are in doubt, you can ask your GP or dermatologist for advice on whether mole mapping would be of benefit to you.

Read more about different types of moles and learn about the difference between normal benign moles (nevi) and irregular atypical moles (dysplastic nevi).

doctor holding a stethoscope

For Healthcare Professionals

  • Skin Cancer Prevention Leaflets
  • Miiskin PRO (US only)

Can You “Mole Map” Yourself with Your Phone?

There are different ways to keep track of any spots, freckles, moles and birthmarks on your body.

The miiskin app helps you map your molesYou can use a pen and paper to create your personal body mole map, recording all existing spots on your skin, size and color of each spot and the date the spot is recorded. Keep track of all the spots on your body and make a note of any changes from exam -to -exam. If you notice a spot or a mole that look different from others, you should call your doctor or dermatologist.

Online you can download printable self exam charts where you can manually note down the moles on your skin.

You can also photograph your skin and moles with the camera on your smartphone. This will help you visually document the appearance of your moles and overall skin. It can be a more convenient and more affordable way of looking out for changes than getting mole maps in a clinic. It could also be in addition to clinic-based mole mapping so you can stay aware of any skin changes between visits to the clinic.

With the increasing quality of smartphone cameras it may be tempting to think that a dermatologist can review smartphone photos at a distance.

Most dermatologists will, however, not review smartphone photos on their own as they do not contain enough information for specialists to evaluate an individual lesion for skin cancer. More dermatologists may choose to review follow-up photos if they have seen the patient in person first.

The Need to Check Your Skin for Changes at Home

Regardless if you get your moles mapped in a clinic, it is still a good idea to follow the skin cancer prevention guidance in your country.

Track your molesIn many countries it is recommended that you regularly perform skin self-examinations and let your physician know if you find any suspicious signs of skin cancer (such as concerning moles or marks).

To help you remember to keep up with your at-home checks, you can add a reminder in your calendar or set reminders on your phone.

 

You May Also Use a “Mole Map App” to Help You Keep Track

Our “mole map app” is called Miiskin and can be downloaded both for Android and iPhone. It has already been downloaded by more than 250,000 people worldwide.

Miiskin allows you to photograph individual moles with close-up photos and lets you set reminders to follow up with your skin checks regularly. It also helps you to compare photos to check for changes.

We Have Now Also Rolled out a New Skin Mapping Solution

Map moles with photos

With Miskin’s Skin Mapping you can photograph an entire area of your skin and let Miiskin identify your moles and marks for you. Noticing new moles and marks is tricky – especially if you have many moles and freckles. As noted earlier, if you are over 35 years of age, it is important to be on the lookout for any new lesions.

Skin mapping with Miiskin can make it easier to look out for any new lesions on your skin. The skin mapping solution is currently available for photos of the back.

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Read More:

Melanoma ribbon What does skin cancer look like?

Signs on skin to look after What signs on my skin should I be aware of?

Smartphone app Can a smartphone app diagnose me for skin cancer?

Early signs of melanoma What are the early signs of melanoma?

Skin cancer overview Skin cancer – general overview

What can melanoma look like What can melanoma look like?

Benign mole look What does a normal benign mole look like?

Melanoma skin cancer risk What is basal cell carcinoma and how does it look like?

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Compare mole images over time

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  • Photos are securely backed up aside from phone’s gallery.
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  • Automatic Skin Mapping to highlight moles and marks.

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