Dermatopathologist Appointment

Today we saw Dr. Argenyi at the UWMC Dermatology who specializes in pigmented lesions and dermatopathology.  Because of Brandon’s history with Melanoma he is at risk for new melanoma moles. The last Dermatologist we saw referred him to a Pigment Specialist since he has many dysplastic nevis, which are moles whose appearance are different from that of common moles. First a Resident Doctor gave Brandon a thorough exam, then Dr. Argenyi did another thorough check of his entire body with a Dermoscope. This is a diagnostic tool which is like a very high magnification lens with a built-in illuminating system to view of skin lesions not normally visible to the unaided eye. They marked 4 moles to watch and one to later biopsy.

Then they took digital photography of all 5 moles and one photo of his entire back and mapped the location of all the moles.  We will get the results back from the biopsy in about a week. The next step for monitoring Brandon’s moles is Grid Photography. Grid Photography will allow them to watch pigmented lesions and moles for change to catch any possible melanoma early and avoid biopies of moles which are benign.  After Grid Photography we will continue to see Brandon’s Dermatologist Dr. Newman in the next 3-6 months and in 1 year we will go back to Dr. Argenyi for more monitoring with the mapping and photography. We will continue to do Home Skin Check Exams to watch for any changes or new moles. We felt good after our appointment today knowing we are using all available tools to help prevent new melanoma.