The portrayal of moles in dermatology cartoons.

Abstract

Media portrayals of medical disorders can influence public beliefs about those disorders. There have been no previous studies about the depiction of dermatological conditions in cartoons. The aim of this study was to describe the portrayal of skin moles in cartoons. The image sections of internet search engines Google, Yahoo, Bing and DuckDuckGo were inspected for single-panel cartoons which referred to skin moles. Each cartoon was examined according to characteristics of the patient, mole(s) and treatment. Sixty-six cartoons were identified. One third of the moles were portrayed as suspicious, a quality often conveyed by a furtive-looking mole creature on the patient. Most cartoons depicted or mentioned a medical doctor; a dermatologist featured in 12 cases. There was discretion in how the moles were managed. Among the treatment options were excision, hitting the mole with a mallet, and observation over time. It was noteworthy that none of the cartoons made specific reference to melanoma. The study findings may creatively inform efforts to educate the public and health professionals about moles and their management.