People who have been diagnosed with skin cancers should have regular skin exams by their dermatologist. Depending on the type of skin cancer, you may need to come more often or have a more thorough exam.
What to expect:
Our office usually performs 2 types of skin exams: an upper body exam and a full body exam. During the upper body exam, you will undress from the waist up and your provider will look over the skin on your scalp, face, ears, neck, chest, back, sides, and both arms. During a full body skin exam, you are completely undressed, and the provider examines all your skin – from your scalp to your toes and everything in between.
Some spots may require viewing under a special magnifier called a dermatoscope. Usually any suspicious lesions are biopsied, frozen, or documented for future observation. Skin exams can take anywhere from 5 minutes to an hour depending on the number of lesions and any procedures that need to be done during your visit.
Check yourself!
You can always do a skin check on yourself. Here’s a checklist to get your started: