Often, only a biopsy is needed to diagnose melanoma. If pathology results show the melanoma is thicker, you will have scans to find out more about the melanoma. You may also have other tests during treatment or as part of follow-up care after treatment finishes.
Imaging scans use different methods to create images of the inside of the body:
Confocal microscopy
This is a non-invasive type of imaging that allows a dermatologist to see a very detailed and magnified view of your skin cells. The person doing the confocal microscopy uses a handheld device that sends out a low-power laser beam of light, which magnifies cells in the skin by about 1000 times.
Ultrasound
The person doing the ultrasound will move a handheld device called a transducer across part of your body. The transducer sends out soundwaves that echo when they meet something solid, such as an organ or tumour. A computer turns the echoes into pictures.
Learn more about ultrasounds.
CT scan
A CT (computerised tomography) scan uses x-ray beams to create detailed, cross-sectional pictures.
Before the scan, you may have an injection of a liquid dye (called contrast) to make the pictures clearer.
The CT scanner is large and round like a doughnut. You will need to lie still on a table while the scanner moves around you.
Learn more about CT scans.
MRI scan
An MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scan uses a powerful magnet and radio waves to create detailed cross-sectional pictures.
Before the scan, you may have an injection of a liquid dye (called contrast) to make the pictures clearer.
During the scan, you will lie on an examination table that slides into a large metal tube that is open at both ends.
The noisy and narrow MRI machine makes some people feel anxious or claustrophobic. Let your medical team know beforehand if you are anxious – you may be offered medicine to help you relax.
Learn more about MRI scans.
PET–CT scan
A PET (positron emission tomography) scan combined with a CT scan is a specialised imaging test. A glucose solution containing a small amount of radioactive material will be injected into a vein in your arm. Cancer cells can show up brighter on the scan because they take up more of the glucose solution than normal cells do.
Learn more about PET-CT scans.
→ READ MORE: Staging and prognosis for melanoma
Podcast: Tests and Cancer
Listen to more episodes of our podcast for people affected by cancer
Featured Resource
The information on this page is also available for download.
More resources
A/Prof Rachel Roberts-Thomson, Medical Oncologist, The Queen Elizabeth Hospital, SA; A/Prof Robyn Saw, Surgical Oncologist, Melanoma Institute Australia, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital and The University of Sydney, NSW; Alison Button-Sloan, Consumer; Dr Marcus Cheng, Radiation Oncologist Registrar, Alfred Health, VIC; Prof Anne Cust, Deputy Director, The Daffodil Centre, The University of Sydney and Cancer Council NSW, Chair, National Skin Cancer Committee, Cancer Council, and faculty member, Melanoma Institute Australia; Prof David Gyorki, Surgical Oncologist, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, VIC; Dr Rhonda Harvey, Mohs Surgeon, Dermatologist, Green Square Dermatology, The Skin Hospital, Darlinghurst and Sydney Melanoma Diagnostic Centre, RPA, NSW; David Hoffman, Consumer; A/Prof Jeremy Hudson, Southern Cross University, James Cook University, Chair of Dermatology RACGP, Clinical Director, North Queensland Skin Cancer, QLD; Dr Damien Kee, Medical Oncologist, Austin Health and Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre and Clinical Research Fellow, Walter & Eliza Hall Institute, VIC; Angelica Miller, Melanoma Community Support Nurse, Melanoma Institute Australia, WA; Romy Pham, 13 11 20 Consultant, QLD; A/Prof Sasha Senthi, Radiation Oncologist, Alfred Health, and Clinical Research Fellow, Victorian Cancer Agency, VIC; Dr Chistoph Sinz, Dermatologist, Melanoma Institute Australia, NSW; Dr Amelia Smit, Research Fellow, Melanoma and Skin Cancer, The Daffodil Centre, The University of Sydney and Cancer Council NSW; Nicole Taylor, Clinical Nurse Consultant, Crown Princess Mary Cancer Centre, Westmead Hospital, NSW.
View the Cancer Council NSW editorial policy.
