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Scientifically known as nevi, they are small benign tumors formed by melanocytes, cells that produce melanin, the pigment responsible for skin and hair color. A concentration of melanocytes greater than normal ends up forming dark spots. When they occur in the deepest layer of the skin, they are bluish – but are usually black or brown in color. Spots appear both in childhood, during growth, and in adulthood, due to a number of factors – for example, exposure to sunlight. During pregnancy, women produce hormones that are also capable of stimulating the formation of new spots and the increase of existing ones – and the use of birth control pills can have the same effect. In most cases, a mole poses no health risk; even so, it should be observed by a dermatologist, especially if it changes color, enlarges, itches or bleeds.
“In these cases, there is a chance, even if remote, that the mole will evolve into skin cancer, the feared melanoma”, says Eduardo Lacaz, dermatologist at the Faculdade de Medicina da Fundação do ABC, in Santo André, São Paulo.