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Skin tag turning red: Why they develop, and how to remove them

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Why they develop, and how to remove them

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Cancerous skin tags: Pictures, removal, and more

Skin tags are not cancerous (benign) and cannot become cancerous. Although most skin tags do not need to be removed, a doctor can do so, if necessary.

In this article, learn about whether or not skin tags are cancerous.

This article also covers causes of skin tags, how to recognize them, when to contact a doctor, diagnosis, and removal (if necessary).

Skin tags are not cancerous and do not have the potential to become cancerous. Nearly half of all adults in the United States have one or more skin tags.

Skin tags contain loosely arranged collagen fibers and blood vessels encased in a thicker or thinner surface layer of the skin, or the epidermis.

Collagen is a large family of proteins present in most bodily tissues. It is very important for skin structure and a major component of the middle, thickest skin layer, or the dermis.

Skin tags are also known as:

  • acrochordons
  • papillomas (a general term for benign skin tumors)
  • fibroepithelial polyps (skin growths made of fibrous tissue and the upper skin layers)

Although skin tags themselves are not cancerous, they can look similar to tumors associated with types of skin cancer — particularly basal cell carcinoma (BCC) or malignant melanoma. Also, tumors can sometimes resemble irritated or infarcted skin tags.

Doctors do not know why skin tags develop. However, there are several theories as to why they occur.

These theories suggest that skin tags may occur due to:

  • irritation or friction associated with skin-on-skin rubbing
  • obesity, which means having more skin folds
  • type 2 diabetes or insulin resistance
  • human papillomavirus infections
  • genetics
  • the skin condition Birt-Hogg-Dube syndrome
  • high levels of tissue and epidermal growth factors, especially during pregnancy or gigantism (acromegaly)
  • hormone imbalances
  • metabolic syndrome
  • cardiovascular disease
  • aging and the gradual loss of skin elasticity
  • polycystic ovary syndrome

Skin tags are usually painless, but they may be itchy or become painful when they catch or rub against jewelry or clothing. They may also alter the skin’s appearance. In some people, they may also cause emotional distress.

Skin tags tend to grow in places where the skin folds, such as the:

  • groin
  • underarms
  • neck
  • eyelids

Skin tags often appear to hang off of the skin. They can vary in appearance but they are typically:

  • skin colored or brown (or pink or red, especially after irritation)
  • oval shaped
  • soft
  • attached to a fleshy stalk
  • 2–5 millimeters to several centimeters across
  • thread-like in appearance
  • in clusters or strings, especially around the neck

Importantly, skin tags can sometimes look like growths associated with other skin conditions, such as:

  • seborrheic keratosis
  • molluscum contagiosum
  • benign melanocytic nevi
  • neurofibromas
  • BCC
  • warts

The chance of developing skin tags tends to increase with age. Skin tags can develop starting in someone’s teenage years or 20s. However, most people will stop developing new skin tags after the age of 70 years.

Most skin tags are harmless. However, those that develop on long, narrow stalks can twist, thereby reducing blood flow to the growth. If this occurs, the skin tag can become black or dark brown.

A person can talk with a doctor if their skin tag changes in feel, color, appearance, or size. They should also talk with a doctor about painful skin tags and those that cause physical discomfort or emotional distress.

A doctor can rule out other causes of skin growths that may be harmful, including skin cancer. They can also reassure people with skin tags that the growths are common and no cause for concern.

Doctors can often diagnose skin tags simply by examining them.

They may only perform a biopsy, or collect a tiny sample of the growth to examine using a microscope, if the cause is unclear. A doctor will normally send removed skin tags for pathological evaluation to determine the precise cause.

There are no specific laboratory, radiographic, or other diagnostic tests to diagnose skin tags. For this reason, the doctor may run other tests to rule out other potential causes.

They may also run tests to check for conditions known to potentially cause or worsen skin tags, such as diabetes or metabolic syndrome.

This may mean evaluating someone’s:

  • A1c levels
  • fasting and postprandial (after eating) blood glucose levels
  • lipid profile
  • body mass index (MBI)

Skin tags typically do not need to be removed. However, if they are irritating, uncomfortable, painful, large, or in an awkward location, a doctor or surgeon can remove them using one of several methods.

These include:

  • surgical excision, which refers to cutting it out using scissors or other cutting tools
  • electrocautery, which refers to delivering heat via an electric current
  • CO2 laser therapy, which refers to using light-based energy
  • cryosurgery, which refers to freezing it off using liquid nitrogen
  • ligation, which refers to using a suture wrapped around the neck of the tag to stop blood flow
  • shave excision, which refers to shaving or snipping it off after injecting the base with local anesthetics
  • radiocautery, which refers to burning it off using radio waves

Most skin tags will heal on their own with proper care, such as moisturizing and basic hygiene. Typically, with professional removal, it only takes one session to remove a skin tag. However, a doctor may also schedule follow-up visits to ensure that the skin heals properly and that no further treatments are necessary.

Doctors may advise people with skin tags to maintain a moderate weight and practice healthful habits, such as getting enough exercise, staying hydrated, and getting enough rest.

Adopting these habits may help reduce the chance of developing new skin tags. Also, wearing loose clothing and not wearing jewelry in places that may come into contact with skin tags can help reduce irritation.

Skin tags are usually harmless. Most only require removal if they are causing pain, irritation, or emotional distress or are changing in size, shape, or color.

People should never attempt to remove or damage skin tags at home. Only doctors, and ideally dermatologists, should remove skin tags. This is to reduce the risk of excessive bleeding, scarring, and infection.

Removing a skin growth at home also increases the likelihood that a potentially cancerous or harmful growth will go undetected and spread or worsen.

What are skin tags? | MC Lasersvit

Skin tag (acrochordon, soft fibroma, mark) is a benign skin neoplasm. In fact, these are growths from epithelial cells of a non-dense consistency. A polyp with or without a thin stalk, natural or brown, protrudes above the level of the skin. This formation does not pose a danger to the life and health of the patient, however, it is considered as a serious skin defect. Also, a convex growth can cause constant discomfort when interacting with clothes, underwear, accessories – in case of injury, the tag may begin to bleed. In a calm state, a soft fibroma does not bother the patient, does not itch, does not hurt.

Causes

Skin tags occur in 50% of the adult population. With age, the risk of their occurrence increases in people who have not encountered such a problem before. The exact reasons for the formation of acrochordons are not known. Dermatologists are inclined to believe that the predisposition to this skin pathology is higher in obese people, in patients with diabetes mellitus, and hormonal dysfunction. Heredity is not excluded – a person is highly likely to develop spots and growths with age if both or one of the parents had such manifestations. There is also a hypothesis that this skin anomaly appears in places of excessive friction of the skin, for example, in the armpits, along the inguinal fold.

At the same time, clinical dermatological practice shows that tags can equally appear in a thin person without chronic diseases on any part of the body for no apparent reason.

Should tags be removed

It is important to note that skin tags are not contagious, do not carry a risk of developing cancer, and are not symptoms of diseases of the internal organs. This is a completely harmless, according to most dermatologists, neoplasm. However, you still need to remove it. Firstly, this anomaly is a serious cosmetic problem when it appears on the face, neck, and other open areas of the skin. The presence of a polyp of this type can develop a complex in the owner of the tag and disgust in others. Well, as mentioned above, with an injury, the acrochordon can begin to bleed.

Treatment involves removing the growth. However, doing it yourself at home is categorically not recommended, as there is a risk of infection, bleeding. In addition, only a doctor can diagnose a tag. A person without special medical education or a doctor of a different specialization may mistake a more serious skin disease for a tag.

In a medical clinic, skin formations of this type are diagnosed and removed by freezing, radio wave knife or laser method.

Advantages of the laser method at Lasersvit Medical Center

We invite everyone who has encountered this skin pathology to undergo diagnostics and treatment in our clinic. The doctor, after a visual examination and dermatoscopy, will determine the nature of the neoplasm, and then remove the growth with a laser. Modern laser equipment works precisely, precisely, evaporating skin growths layer by layer and without affecting neighboring tissues. The laser method is the safest and most effective method of treatment, because:

  • does not take much time;
  • treatment is painless and bloodless;
  • no risk of infection;
  • education is burned out completely.

The laser beam precisely burns out only pathological tissues. The wound at the site of exposure heals very quickly, there are no traces of treatment left on the skin. Long-term rehabilitation is not required. In one session, the doctor can remove several pathological formations.

You can learn more about the procedure by phone or at a dermatologist’s appointment at the Lazersvit Medical Center. We will be happy to answer your questions.

How to diagnose and treat skin tags

How to diagnose and treat skin tags – advice from a dermatologist

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Skin tags (acrochordons) are small flesh-colored volumetric formations. They can vary in size from a few millimeters up to 5 cm wide. Skin tags are usually found on the neck, armpits, around the groin, or under the breasts. They can also grow on the eyelids or under the folds of the buttocks. Acrochordons may look like warts but are usually:

  • smooth and soft growth (warts are usually rougher with uneven surface)
  • lumpy growths and hanging from the skin (warts are usually slightly raised or flat)
  • does not spread to other areas of the skin (warts spread very easily, so a sudden outbreak or cluster of growths is more likely to be warts).

Skin tags do not usually cause pain or discomfort. A dermatologist or therapist is responsible for diagnosing and treating skin tags.

Why skin tags appear

Skin tags are composed of loose collagen fibers and blood vessels surrounded by skin. Both men and women can develop skin lesions. They usually occur in older people and people who are obese or have type 2 diabetes. Pregnant women may also be more likely to develop skin lesions as a result of changes in hormone levels. It has been observed that acrochordons tend to grow in skin folds where the skin rubs against itself, such as on the neck, armpits, or groin. That’s why they tend to affect overweight people who have extra folds in their skin.

When acrochordons can be a problem

Skin tags are harmless and do not usually cause pain or discomfort. However, the patient may consider removing skin tags if they affect self-esteem or if they get caught on clothing or jewelry and bleed. Sometimes skin tags fall off on their own if the tissue has died due to a lack of blood supply.

Skin Tag Removal

Do not attempt to remove acrochordons without consulting a dermatologist or physician first, and never cut off large skin tags yourself because they will bleed profusely. Skin tags can be easily removed in the cosmology room in the same way that warts are removed. However, be aware that creo-removal and burning of skin tags may cause irritation and temporary discoloration of the skin, the skin tag may not fall off and further treatment may be required.

Author: Makarova Ksenia Nikolaevna

Specialization: Dermatologist

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Literature

  1. Adaskevich, V. P. Diagnostic indices in dermatology. – M., 2004. -164 p.
  2. Adaskevich, V.P. Itching of the skin as a dermadrom of systemic diseases / V.P. Adaskevich, M.A. Katina // Russian journal of skin and venereal diseases. – 2010. – No. 4. – S. 12-20.
  3. Belousova, T.A. Modern ideas about the structure and function of the skin barrier and the therapeutic possibilities of its disorders / T.A. Belousova, M.V. Goryachkina // Russian medical journal. – 2004. – No. 18.-S. 1082-1084.
  4. Clinical dermatovenereology: in 2 volumes / ed. Yu.K. Skripkina, Yu.S. Butov. – M.: Geotar-Media, 2009. – V. 2. – 921 p.
  5. Skin diseases: diagnosis and treatment / T.P. Hebif; per. from English: ed. A.A. Kurbanova. – M.: MEDpress-inform, 2008. – 671 p.

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