Peer Reviewed

What's Your Diagnosis?

A Teenager With a Changing Mole on Her Back

Alexander K.C. Leung, MD, MBBS, FRCPC, FRCP
Benjamin Barankin, MD, FRCPC
Volume 15 - Issue 12 - December 2016

 

    • AUTHORS:
      Alexander K. C. Leung, MD
      University of Calgary and pediatric consultant at the Alberta Children’s Hospital in Calgary, Alberta, Canada

      Benjamin Barankin, MD
      Toronto Dermatology Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada

       

      CITATION:
      Leung AKC, Barankin B. A teenager with a changing mole on her back. Consultant360. Published July 18, 2017. https://www.consultant360.com/articles/teenager-changing-mole-her-back

       

      A 16-year-old girl presented with a “changing mole” on her right upper back. Several asymptomatic pigmented moles had been noted on her back when she was approximately 10 years of age. Two years ago, a white halo had developed surrounding one of the moles (the biggest one) on the right upper back. Over time, there had been an increase in size of the halo and a decrease in size and pigmentation of the encircled mole. The patient was otherwise in good health, and she had no history of using any topical agents over the lesion. She had no personal or family history of autoimmune disorders or melanoma.

      halo nevus teenager

      PHYSICAL EXAMINATION

      Physical examination revealed a faint pink-colored mole measuring 0.4 by 0.8 cm on the right upper back, surrounded by a depigmented, symmetric macule measuring 2 cm in diameter. There were several melanocytic nevi on the back, with one adjacent to the halo. There were no other cutaneous or systemic abnormalities.

      WHAT’S YOUR DIAGNOSIS?

      Answer on next page.