[Guest]

i recently began hearing a lot about skin cancer, melanoma, etc. i was giving my boyfriend a back rub last week when i noticed these two mole like spots on his back. the problem is, neither he or i has ever payed any attention to spots on his skin, so we don't know how long they have been there. he insists that nothing is wrong (which could be the case) and refuses to discuss the subject anymore. i read about skin cancer on your site and was wondering if his spots/moles could be dangerous. he is a nineteen year old white male. i would say he has had a normal (not excessive) ammount of exposure to the sun in his lifetime, but he has been burned and peeled several times on his back throughout his lifetime. recently we have been getting in the sun frequently, and he hasn't gotten really burned or anything, but we do get sun. he keeps sunscreen on, but is not as concearned with it as perhaps he should be. his skin is about average for a white person, not naturally dark or very pale. one of the spots is about "O" big and dark brown in color. it is a little raised above the surrounding skin, but not much at all. the other is about the same size, but light brown and pinkish/tanish. i don't know how long they have been there and neither does he. we haven't noticed if they've grown or changed. he has no history of skin cancer in his family. should i force him to go to the doctor or leave it alone? it will be very difficult to get him to see a doctor, especially if he feels nothing is wrong. what do you think?
thanks.

[Guest]

I cannot tell you with any certaintly about what is going on, without looking at the moles. However, based on your description I am not seriously worried. He would have to see a dermatologist to know for sure. In the meantime, watch the moles to check for any change. If they are changing, then get an appointment right away. You can even take pictures of them to compare.
[quote] i recently began hearing a lot about skin cancer, melanoma, etc. i was giving my boyfriend a back rub last week when i noticed these two mole-like spots on his back... [/quote]

[Guest]

thanks!
[quote] I cannot tell you with any certaintly about what is going on, without looking at the moles. However, based on your description I am not seriously worried... [/quote]