A mole is a tight cluster of cells, which produce pigmentation of the skin, because they are so close together, the mole will appear darker than the skin itself. Skin Tags are a common, small, soft growth that protrudes from the surface of the skin, which can be brown or flesh coloured.
Moles are usually removed by converting light energy from a laser into heat, which is then absorbed by the pigment in the skin, causing the breakup of the mole. Skin tags are removed using the gold standard thermal diathermy, which uses thermolysis to cauterise and coagulate the small growth, most commonly used for medium to large size tags. For much smaller ones, we would perform cryosurgery, where the tag is frozen off using liquid nitrogen.
Mole removal will feel like a warm sensation. Surgical treatments are conducted under local anaesthetic, and so the treatment will be painless. Laser treatment may cause very slight discomfort, but is usually well tolerated.
