What Are Skin Tags?
Skin tags (medically called acrochordons) are small, soft, skin-coloured or slightly darker growths that hang off the skin on a narrow stalk. They are extremely common, entirely benign, and carry no risk of becoming cancerous. Most people develop at least a few over their lifetime, particularly with increasing age.
Causes & Risk Factors
- Friction — skin tags are most common where skin rubs against skin or clothing, such as the neck, armpits, groin and under the breasts
- Increasing age
- Being overweight, and insulin resistance or metabolic syndrome, which are associated with a higher number of skin tags
- Pregnancy, likely related to hormonal changes and weight gain
- A genetic tendency — they often run in families
Do Skin Tags Need Treatment?
No — skin tags are entirely harmless and removal is never medically necessary. Patients choose removal for comfort (where a tag catches on clothing, jewellery or a razor and becomes sore or bleeds) or simply for cosmetic preference. Because they carry no health risk, there is no urgency to remove them, and it is entirely reasonable to leave them alone indefinitely if they are not bothersome.
Removal Methods
- Snip excision — the tag is simply snipped off at its base with fine scissors; usually the quickest option and well suited to most tags
- Cryotherapy — freezing the tag with liquid nitrogen, causing it to fall off over the following days
- Cautery / electrodesiccation — the base of the tag is sealed with heat, removing it and controlling any bleeding at the same time
All methods are quick, performed under local anaesthetic (often not even required for smaller tags), with minimal discomfort and no significant downtime. Sutures are not usually needed.
Recovery
Recovery is minimal — a small scab typically forms and settles within one to two weeks, with little to no visible mark afterwards in most cases.