Bluecatbaby asks…A salon in my town is offering a Groupon deal on a skin treatment called Rejuvi Spotaway. They advertise it as being able to remove brown spots and moles, and it is a topical product that is applied once in the salon. I’m interested but wary. Can anyone tell me if this is a good idea? The deal expires in 4 days.
The Right Brain responds:
Bluecatbaby is one of the regulars in our Forum and we became worried for her when we saw she was looking at mole removal products. Moles are dark clumps of pigment that can become cancerous and they should not be taken lightly! (pun intended.) It’s frightening how much bad information about mole removal products is out there on the inter webs. According to one astonishingly bad piece of information we found, if you want to avoid the expense and hassle of surgery you can simply cut off the offending mole with a pair of scissors. Yikes! But when we went to debunk these mole minimizers we were surprised at how hard it can be to find clear proof that something absurd is not true.
Trying to prove a negative
If we told you that sticking a green bean up your nose is an easy cure for a headache, you would be hard-pressed to find any evidence to the contrary in the scientific literature. No one would have wasted their time doing a study to disapprove such a ridiculous notion. You’d find plenty of information about what DOES work (especially when the subject deals with an over-the-counter drug) but you WON’T find a paper entitled “Results of a Double-blind Clinical Study Proving Nasal Injection of Phaseolus vulgaris (Green Beans) Resolves Cranial Pain.” That’s kind of how we felt when researching removal creams. There was no “smoking gun” that said mole removing creams were BS. So, we’ll have to rely on a rather circumspect argument to make our case.
Reason 1: Mole removal creams are not legal drugs
First, there are no approved over-the-counter drug treatments to remove moles, that much was easy to establish. You can search for yourself looking at the FDA’s list of approved OTC monographs.
Reason 2: The mode of action is invalid
Some of the mole removing creams that we found supposedly work by using “acid” that caused the mole to dissolve. For example, here are the ingredients in the Spotway product that BCB asked: Deionized water , magnesium oxide, n-propanol, benzoic acid, triethanolamine, phytic acid
We found other products which used “skin irritating” acids to “dissolve” the mole. This sounds suspiciously familiar to the type of salicylic acid products which ARE approved for removing warts. Okay, moles and warts are both skin bumps. Isn’t ok to use the same product for both? The answer is a resounding “Nope!” The Wart Remover monograph specifically says that this product should not be used on moles.
Reason 3: Medical professionals agree
Irritating the mole with a chemical cream will not make it go away. The only effective ways to remove moles are to have them surgically removed by a dermatologist or a cosmetic surgeon or, sometimes, to have them lightened up with the application of a laser based treatment. As always the diagnosis and the management of your particular skin concern will require a physical examination by your personal physician.
I also spoke to a couple of doctors off the record (hey not everyone wants to have their name quoted on an anonymous beauty blog, go figure.) and they both told me that based on their clinical experience there is no safe approved way to remove a mole by using a nonprescription cream. In fact, they were aghast at the notion of anyone attempting to remove moles themselves because moles can be pre-cancerous and need to be evaluated by a dermatologist. Melanoma is nothing to screw around with.
The Beauty Brains bottom line
As I told Bluecatbaby in the Forum, unless this ”mole removing” product is designed to kill vermin in your garden I would have nothing to do with it. If you really are concerned about getting rid of pigmented patches of skin please see a dermatologist first for your own safety.
Image credit: fotopedia.com
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Okay; as a previous heavily contributing member to the Beauty Brains forum and one who even did product reviews here (Hi Lefty and Righty! Remember me?) , I’d like to weigh in on this discussion.
I have struggled with moles for two reasons: I have very fair skin due to my Irish, English, German, and French heritage and also my parents’ decision in the ’60s to put their children under a sun lamp, naked, (YIKES!) for 20 minutes a day in hopes of increasing their Vitamin D absorbency. Wow: Thanks Mom and Dad. *shakes head*
Fast forward to the “oughts” (2000 – 2009) when I could afford laser treatment by a top-notch dermatologist in the Chicagoland area to try and rid myself of the hyperpigmentation spots and moles I had obtained as result of these factors that embarrassed me when wearing summer clothing. What did I do? I embraced a dermatologist’s recommendation to lighten the damage through laser treatments.
The results: The ones that were flat before laser treatments are gone but a few that were raised are still visible yet are hard to see or find unless you are looking for them or touching my skin. Bottom line? I am VERY pleased with the results. In follow-up and per my request, this dermatologist also gave me a prescription for 4% Hydroquinone to get rid of the rest but for the record, I hated the using it. (Whaaaat? $200+ a tube that insurance doesn’t didn’t cover that also caused skin irritation and took months to see very minimal improvements? No thanks; I won’t do that again.)
For the record: I read extensively before I had the two laser treatments but also had some moles removed surgically when I was in my early twenties. But here’s the problem: Moles are not easy to get rid. They are at the very bottom layers of the epidermis’ layers so doctors need to cut deep and you can expect scars….and I have them. But the good news is that when I used over-the-counter scar treatments, I have been pleased with the results. Are they gone? No, but they look better.
My recommendation? Go the laser route with a good dermatologist if at all possible. NO scarring and lightening to a near non-noticable level. It’s not cheap but it is your skin which imparts the impression of healthy…or not and the results last if you are fastidious with sunscreen ointment, covering up, AND STAYING OUT OF THE SUN!!!
Here’s what I conclude: I’m glad I spent the money to get rid of them since they bothered me. Now, I no longer have to hide or obsess over them when I wear summertime fashions so i can wear what I like. But I’m also smart enough to avoid getting them back. It’s an ugly problem that is preventable if you’re smart about it…so keep reading the Beauty Brains to stay smart!
@Karen: Thanks for sharing your experience. It’s good to hear from you again!
Great article, thanks. Melanoma (skin cancer) is rife in my family, my Father being particularly affected. We have all had cancerous and pre-cancerous moles, lumps and bumps surgically removed, I currently have 3 stitches in the back of my hand from the latest removal. When skin cancer is a part of ones genetic makeup surgery is the only option and worth the tiny scars.
Thanks for your in-depth answer, and I never did go for the Groupon deal. And after reading what Karen and Jackie P have had to deal with, I’m grateful that I have just a few moles that never change. But I do plan on seeing a dermatologist soon for a screening.
I have nothing to add except I love the photo!
I have two round flat moles on my face. Is there any way to get rid of them with lasers?
I’m a somewhat new reader to The Beauty Brains… this post was especially interesting because I have A LOT of moles… I think it’s hereditary because both my parents have a lot of them… anyway… while I was in New York City I was walking around China Town and came across a whole in the wall place that offered beauty services. I only needed to get my eyebrows done so I went in on a whim.
As I was leaving and reading over their menu items I noticed “mole removal”. I asked and before I knew it I was paying $30+ to have a particularly annoying mole on my neck removed.
I have no idea what they put on it – I know it’s bad! – but it stringed a little bit – when it was all done I had a scab the size of my mole. When the scab fell off my mole was “gone”. Ok, the mole is still there but it’s now skin/flesh color and blends right in with the rest of my neck.
It was something very risky and somewhat spontaneous. I should have/do more research because you never know…
However, I am happy with the results. Still I wouldn’t recommend something like this to anyone without the proper research.
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