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Symptoms
By Mayo Clinic staff
Although the typical mole is a plain, brown spot, moles come in a wide variety of colors, shapes and sizes:
- Color. They can be flesh-colored, reddish-brown, medium to dark brown, or blue.
- Shape. They can vary in shape from oval to round.
- Size. They can be as small as a pinhead or large enough to cover an entire limb. Generally, moles are less than one-quarter of an inch large.
Moles can develop virtually anywhere on your body, including your scalp, armpits, under your nails, and between your fingers and toes. Most people have between 10 and 40 moles, although the number you have may change throughout life. New moles can appear into midadulthood, and because moles last about 50 years, some moles may disappear as you age.
Varied surfaces
The surface of a mole can be smooth or wrinkled, flat or raised. Sometimes a mole may start out flat and brown and later become slightly raised and lighter in color. Some may become raised enough that they form a small stalk and are eventually rubbed off. Others may simply disappear.
Although most moles develop by age 20, they can continue to appear until midlife. There are also certain times in your life when moles are more apt to change; for example, they're likely to become darker, larger and more numerous because of hormonal changes that occur during adolescence or pregnancy.
