What you\u2019re seeing on your grandpa\u2019s neck is very often something called seborrheic keratosis\u2014a common, benign skin growth that tends to appear after age 50. These spots can look dramatic: brown, black, or tan, with a waxy, \u201cstuck\u2011on\u201d appearance that can make anyone think of skin cancer. They may show up one by one or in clusters, and can seem to appear almost overnight, especially on the chest, back, scalp, or neck.<\/p>\n
Despite their unsettling look, seborrheic keratoses are not cancer and do not turn into cancer. Still, they can closely mimic melanoma, so any spot that changes, bleeds, or looks irregular deserves a doctor\u2019s eye. A clinician can usually recognize them on sight, sometimes with a dermatoscope, and remove bothersome ones by freezing or gentle scraping. The most important step is simple: don\u2019t pick or cut them yourself, and don\u2019t stay silent\u2014have them checked, and replace fear with informed reassurance.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
What you\u2019re seeing on your grandpa\u2019s neck is very often something called seborrheic keratosis\u2014a common, benign skin growth that tends to appear after age 50. These spots… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1042","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n