Is This New Growth on My Breast Skin Cancer? What a Full-Body Skin Exam Can Reveal
Finding a new or changing growth on the breast—or anywhere on the body—can understandably raise concerns about skin cancer. But many spots that look unusual are actually benign. The challenge is knowing which lesions can simply be monitored and which deserve closer evaluation.
Recently, a 69-year-old woman visited Village Dermatology for a full-body skin examination as part of her annual monitoring. She was particularly concerned about skin lesions on her right breast.
Her visit centered on an important question many patients ask:
“Is this growth on my breast something I should be worried about?”
A comprehensive skin examination, including evaluation with a dermatoscope, revealed reassuring findings: no evidence of skin malignancy was identified during her examination. The lesion on her right medial breast was consistent with an irritated seborrheic keratosis, a benign skin growth.
Her examination also identified several other common benign conditions, including benign moles, sebaceous hyperplasia, lentigines, seborrheic keratoses, cherry angiomas, a congenital nevus, and warts.
For adults considering an annual skin cancer screening in Houston or Katy, Texas, this case illustrates why a full-body skin examination can be valuable even when the spot that prompted the appointment ultimately turns out to be benign.
What Happens During a Full-Body Skin Examination?
A full-body skin examination gives a dermatologist an opportunity to systematically evaluate the skin for suspicious lesions as well as common benign growths.
For this patient, the examination included the:
Scalp and hair
Face and eyelids
Lips and neck
Chest and abdomen
Back
Arms and legs
Hands, feet, digits, and nails
Groin, genital region, and buttocks
A dermatoscope was also used during the examination. Dermoscopy provides a magnified view of structures within a skin lesion that may not be as apparent to the naked eye.
Although this patient had several different types of skin lesions, no findings concerning for malignancy were identified during this visit.
What Was the Growth on Her Right Breast?
The lesion on the patient's right medial breast was an irritated seborrheic keratosis.
Seborrheic keratoses are extremely common benign growths. They can have a waxy, raised, or "stuck-on" appearance and tend to become more common with age.
Although seborrheic keratoses themselves are benign, they may become irritated by friction from clothing or other trauma. An irritated lesion can become:
Inflamed
Crusted
Itchy
Tender
Traumatized
Prone to bleeding
Because this patient's breast lesion was irritated, liquid nitrogen cryotherapy was performed as a courtesy treatment.
She was advised to contact the office if the lesion failed to resolve or if she experienced excessive crusting, scabbing, redness, or tenderness after treatment.
Can a Seborrheic Keratosis Look Like Skin Cancer?
Some benign skin growths can have features that patients find concerning, particularly when they become darker, raised, crusted, or irritated.
That is one reason it can be difficult to determine what a lesion represents simply by looking at it at home.
A dermatologist can examine the lesion in the context of the patient's other spots and determine whether observation, treatment, additional monitoring, or another diagnostic step is appropriate.
For this patient, the overall examination was reassuring.
What Other Moles Were Found During Her Skin Check?
The patient had multiple benign nevi, commonly known as moles, distributed across her body.
They appeared as regular, symmetrical, evenly colored macules and papules. There were no findings concerning for malignancy during this visit.
One mole on the left rib cage measured approximately 0.6 × 0.5 cm and was documented for observation. The plan was to recheck it at a future examination.
She also had a congenital nevus on the left upper arm.
No treatment was required for these benign moles.
The patient was encouraged to perform monthly self-skin examinations and contact the dermatology office if a mole begins to:
Change in size
Change in shape
Change in color
Itch
Burn
Bleed
What Are the Yellowish Bumps on the Face?
The examination also addressed lesions on the patient's face that were diagnosed as sebaceous hyperplasia.
Sebaceous hyperplasia occurs when normal oil-producing glands become enlarged. These lesions may appear as small yellowish or orange-yellow bumps, sometimes with tiny visible blood vessels.
For this patient, they were present on the nasal dorsum and lower central forehead.
Sebaceous hyperplasia is benign and does not require treatment for medical reasons.
Treatment options were discussed for patients who dislike their appearance, including procedures such as electrodesiccation or laser treatment.
The patient was also prescribed tretinoin 0.025% cream, beginning two to three nights per week and increasing as tolerated, followed by moisturizer.
What Are the Brown Spots That Develop With Age and Sun Exposure?
The patient also had lentigines distributed over sun-exposed areas.
Lentigines are flat, light-brown or tan pigmented spots associated with cumulative sun exposure and sun-damaged skin. They are often referred to casually as sun spots or age spots.
They are benign.
The patient was counseled about broad-spectrum SPF 30+ sunscreen. Cosmetic treatment, including laser therapy, could be considered in the future if desired.
What Are the Waxy Brown Growths That Appear With Age?
Additional seborrheic keratoses were found throughout the patient's body.
These benign, often waxy or warty growths become increasingly common with age and generally do not need to be removed.
Courtesy liquid nitrogen treatment was performed on lesions near the left lower eyelid and right posterior ear.
Cosmetic treatment of additional lesions was also discussed.
What Are Cherry Angiomas?
The small vascular growths identified throughout the patient's body were cherry angiomas.
Cherry angiomas are benign vascular lesions and do not require treatment.
Patients who wish to remove them for cosmetic reasons may discuss options such as laser treatment or electrodesiccation with their dermatologist.
Why Are Annual Skin Exams Important Even When Everything Is Benign?
This visit demonstrates an important benefit of routine dermatologic care.
A patient may arrive worried about one specific growth, but a full-body skin examination allows the dermatologist to evaluate many different lesions at the same appointment.
In this case, several types of benign growths were identified, but no evidence of malignancy was found during the examination.
The visit also established a baseline for future monitoring, including documentation of a mole on the left rib cage that will be rechecked.
Annual examinations do not replace self-monitoring. Patients should continue paying attention to their skin between appointments and schedule an earlier evaluation if a lesion develops concerning changes.
What Should I Look for During a Monthly Self-Skin Check?
Become familiar with the spots already present on your skin so that changes are easier to recognize.
Pay particular attention to a lesion that:
Changes in size, shape, or color
Begins bleeding without an obvious reason
Develops persistent crusting
Becomes persistently itchy, painful, or tender
Looks noticeably different from your other moles
Develops a new or unusual appearance
Continues changing over time
A new growth does not automatically mean skin cancer, but an unexplained or changing lesion deserves appropriate evaluation.
Full-Body Skin Exams and Skin Cancer Screening in Houston and Katy, Texas
This 69-year-old patient's appointment began with concern about lesions on her right breast but ultimately provided reassuring findings.
Her breast lesion was diagnosed as an irritated seborrheic keratosis, and the remainder of her examination identified several other benign skin findings, including benign nevi, sebaceous hyperplasia, lentigines, seborrheic keratoses, cherry angiomas, a congenital nevus, and verruca vulgaris.
Most importantly, no findings concerning for skin malignancy were identified during her examination.
If you have a new growth, changing mole, irritated skin lesion, or simply want to establish routine skin surveillance, a full-body examination can help determine which spots are harmless and which require closer monitoring.
Patients looking for a full-body skin exam in Houston, Texas, skin cancer screening in Katy, Texas, or evaluation of a changing or concerning skin lesion can schedule an appointment with Village Dermatology.
