Moles and melanoma

Scientists are starting to understand what makes one mole healthy while another turns cancerous.


WE'VE long been told to keep an eye on our moles lest they progress to melanoma, a form of skin cancer that's treatable if caught early, deadly if not. But not all moles are equal -- some are risky; others can be safely left alone. The biological roots of those differences are not really understood. However, scientists are making progress on several fronts.