Is it skin cancer or just an ingrown hair?

Are you worried about a raised, ‘boil-like’ bump that seems to have grown darker over time? The fact is that any unusual growth on your skin needs to be checked out by a professional. With approximately 4,000 Kiwis diagnosed with melanoma every year (that’s around 13 people every day), it’s vital to take any new or changing spots or moles on your skin seriously and get them checked by skin cancer detection professionals.

That said, don’t panic ... not every new lump, bump or spot is a sign of skin cancer! In many cases, it could be caused by something very innocuous: an ingrown hair.

What is an ingrown hair?

An ingrown hair is a hair strand that has grown downwards or sideways into the skin. Although anyone can have ingrown hair, it’s most common for people with curly or coarse hair after they shave or wax.

It can also happen when a razor or tweezer unevenly breaks off the hair; this leaves a sharp tip of hair so close to the skin’s surface that’s prone to grow sideways.

Another cause is when dead skin cells clog the hair follicle, forcing the hair tip to grow underneath the skin. When this happens, that area of skin can get irritated and inflamed. Here’s what an infected ingrown hair looks like...

Source: Skin Answer

An ingrown hair is usually not a big issue; most of the time, it’ll go away on its own. Even if it becomes infected, this is usually easily treated.

Quick tip: If you’re prone to ingrown hairs, try gently washing and exfoliating those areas of your skin regularly – this helps slough off dead skin cells so the hairs can get to the surface of the skin.

Knowing the difference between ingrown hairs and skin cancer

While an ingrown hair may resemble some types of skin cancer at first, there are some telltale differences. For starters, ingrown hairs often appear in clusters of raised red bumps. They also often cause fluid-filled cysts to appear which may feature a white or yellow head (much like an infected pimple), plus they can become itchy and sore.

Skin cancer lesions, on the other hand, tend to appear as single moles or bumps. They are usually pain-free during early stages, and while they may appear crusty, they usually don’t contain any pus.

Some signs of an ingrown hair include:

• Small, round, solid bumps (often filled with pus) appearing on the chin, cheeks, legs, pubic area, scalp and armpits
• Darkening skin
• Embedded hairs beneath the skin
• Bumps that are painful, tender and/or and itchy

As a comparison, here are the signs of the most common forms of skin cancer:

Above: Basal cell carcinoma

Basal cell carcinoma:

• A pearly or waxy bump
• A flat, flesh-coloured or brown scar-like lesion
• A bleeding or scabby sore that heals and keeps returning

Above: Squamous cell carcinoma

Squamous cell carcinoma:

• A firm, red nodule
• A flat lesion with a scaly, crusted surface

Above: Melanoma comes in many forms

Melanoma:

• A large brownish spot with darker speckles
• A mole that changes in colour, size, or feel; it may also bleed
• A small lesion with an irregular border and parts that appear red, pink, white, blue, or blue-black
• A painful lesion that itches or burns
• Dark lesions on your palms, soles, fingertips or toes, or on mucous membranes lining your mouth, nose, vagina, or anus

If you’ve noticed a ‘lump’ or ‘bump’ with any of the above features, get it checked out straight away. A MoleMap Skin Check is a good solution for this – or a SpotChat , an online consultation with a specialist Melanographers (a trained skin cancer nurse), who can advise whether the spot has features of skin cancer and your next steps. And she can certainly spot if it’s just an ingrown hair!