Cysts can stay around for months. Whatever you do, don't mess with it, it will only make it worse.

Idk if your student doctor will be able to drain your cyst or not, but there is no harm in going and asking. If not, I would suggest you schedule a dermatologist appointment in your home town the next time you go home.

Hey Magggpie,

I've had a couple of cysts removed from my face, but they weren't caused from acne; I had sebaceous cysts. I had these removed off my left cheek a few years ago now. I have a little bit of indented scarring from where these cysts were removed, but I waited a long time (too long) before having them removed. I thought they were pimples deep under the skin, and just left them alone, all the while they got bigger and bigger - harder, too.

I've never had anyone notice the two areas where the cysts were removed. I have some pictures in the scarring gallery if you want to take a look. I started using copper peptides on these areas 3 months ago, and the areas are really improving. I have no discoloration in these areas.

I would go see a dermatologist. They will be able to determine exactly what these bumps are, and the best course of action to remedy them. Feel free to ask me any questions.

Thanks for your reply, acgerstenberger!

Your scars are not noticable in the sliightest! That gives me hope!

I went to my university doctor who said it seemed like some type of cyst and referred my to my university hospital dermatology clinic. I'm going in tomorrow morning, hopefully they will just remove it. Do you think it's necessary to go to a cosmetic surgeon? I've heard that, but if a derm removed your cysts and you have basically no mark, I'm totally okay with that!

How did they remove the lumps? Did you have stitches?

Hey Magggpie,

I did not have stitches in either site; I was lucky. My dermatologist removed mine; not to say that a cosmetic/plastic surgeon couldn't remove yours. We don't really have any access to cosmetic/plastic surgeons where I live (I have to drive almost two hours to see my dermatologist); if I could have gotten even better results than what I currently have with a cosmetic/plastic surgeon - I might have had them do the procedure instead. I also made sure to follow my recovery instructions to the "t" and got together with the gal who does all my facials/peels and bought some products that help with healing the skin.

My dermatologist used a lance, I believe. I didn't feel a thing - I was like, "When are you going to start?" She looked at me and said, "I already drained and removed one." I was impressed!

My mom got a MASSIVE one on the side on her face (really close to her ear) and she waited forever before having it removed. Because it was on the side of her face and was always covered by her hair, she didn't really mind it and just left it alone. Well, it somehow got infected and blew up the size of a golf ball in about two days. It was really awful. She went to my derm, and it was far too infected to be removed right then and there. She had to take a strong, week-long dose of antibiotics before they'd try and remove it. A few days into the antibiotic, the thing cracked open, and a hard core started to push its way out. My mom had me drain the thing (it was horrible - I almost got sick). She went in a week later, and had the thing removed; she had two layers of stitches. When she went in a week afterward to have the stitches removed, the cyst was trying to grow again, so they removed more tissue. That did the trick. I ended up taking out her stitches this time at home. Now, about a year later, she has a hairline white linear scar, and it is slightly indented. I don't notice it at all, though.

What information did you get from the derm today? I curious as to what they recommended for your treatment.

Hey Magggpie,

 

I did not have stitches in either site; I was lucky. My dermatologist removed mine; not to say that a cosmetic/plastic surgeon couldn't remove yours. We don't really have any access to cosmetic/plastic surgeons where I live (I have to drive almost two hours to see my dermatologist); if I could have gotten even better results than what I currently have with a cosmetic/plastic surgeon - I might have had them do the procedure instead. I also made sure to follow my recovery instructions to the "t" and got together with the gal who does all my facials/peels and bought some products that help with healing the skin.

 

My dermatologist used a lance, I believe. I didn't feel a thing - I was like, "When are you going to start?" She looked at me and said, "I already drained and removed one." I was impressed!

 

My mom got a MASSIVE one on the side on her face (really close to her ear) and she waited forever before having it removed. Because it was on the side of her face and was always covered by her hair, she didn't really mind it and just left it alone. Well, it somehow got infected and blew up the size of a golf ball in about two days. It was really awful. She went to my derm, and it was far too infected to be removed right then and there. She had to take a strong, week-long dose of antibiotics before they'd try and remove it. A few days into the antibiotic, the thing cracked open, and a hard core started to push its way out. My mom had me drain the thing (it was horrible - I almost got sick). She went in a week later, and had the thing removed; she had two layers of stitches. When she went in a week afterward to have the stitches removed, the cyst was trying to grow again, so they removed more tissue. That did the trick. I ended up taking out her stitches this time at home. Now, about a year later, she has a hairline white linear scar, and it is slightly indented. I don't notice it at all, though.

 

What information did you get from the derm today? I curious as to what they recommended for your treatment.

wow! your mom's story sounds so awful! i wonder how cysts can get so inflamed and so big so quickly. like i said, yours are invisible. i would probably be fine with a derm doing mine!

hoooweeverr, this morning I went to the derm, and she said she would try injecting it with cortisone (even though it isn't currently inflamed). It's a little over 12 hours later, and I thiiink the cyst has shrunk. it's difficult to tell because it's currently dormant so i almost have to strech the skin to see it fully. however, i can still feel a lump.

she said to come back in a month (seems like a long time!) if the shot didn't work and they woudl try something else.

Hello again, Magggpie,

I'd take a shot over a lance any day! Hopefully that'll do the trick. My cysts never went away or shrunk into a "dormant" mode... It would either stay the same size and match the surrounding skin color, or would grow bigger and turn red as it expanded. It grew bigger about every 2.5 months - always returning to my natural skin color after its growth, but never shrinking back down or away. I'm guessing the dermatologist believes its acne derived, hence the cortisone shot. Hopefully you'll never have to have it removed; I'm thinking it will resolve itself now that you had the shot.

that's interesting, the way your cyst worked. did you ever figure out exactly what its cause was? since yours never came back, it seems as if they were just flukes!

this morning, the cyst seems almost the same size. I'm not too sure if the shot worked. I'll wait it out - if this dormant cyst doesn't inflame again, I don't even mind it being there. luckily, the derm at my university hospital seemed easy to make an appointment with, so hopefully i can just pop in whenever necessary!

Because my mom got one, too, I'm guessing she passed that little sebaceous cyst gene down to me. I would have rather had one on the side of my face than two on the front! Dang her!

Nope; no root cause was ever determined. My skin is just fussy - the littlest things tend to piss it off. I've also had a number of moles removed as they were precancerous, some of which have grown back and are closely monitored... It seems that all the skin problems that each of my parents had manifested in me.

I've never had a shot of cortisone, but I would think that your skin would need a few days to a week to heal. I'd give it a little time before I considered the shot a failure.

Hey, if anyone could respond to me, that would be great.... I have a cyst on the side of my face very close to my ear and ive had it for 6 months and i want to get it removed and my dermatologist says he can do it and can give me numbing cream and like extra numbing pills or like valium or whatever but i am terrified of the pain. can anyone describe what exactly the doctors do when the remove the cyst and HOW MUCH DOES IT HURT??? but i know acgerstenberger said it didnt hurt when she got hers removed but thats ridiculous like that is extreme luck

a;slkdjf help me

i want it removed but im so scared of cutting MY SKIN OPEN AND ...OH MY GOSH

im 16 by the way