A man was told to see a doctor "immediately" after posting a picture of his fingernail.
When one Reddit user casually posted a photo of their hand, they probably didn’t expect an internet-wide medical emergency to unfold, but that’s exactly what happened.
The post featured a picture of their nail with a caption: “Mark on my finger that darkened over time.” And yes, the dark line down the nail did not go unnoticed.
Check out the post below:One commenter quickly jumped into the comment section to advise the man to "have a doctor look at that," and warned: "Unexplained darkening of tissue may be serious.”
The original poster responded to the comment by explaining that they’d had the mark for five years and had been told it was “just a mole,” but still asked if it was worth “[getting] it checked again.”
Reddit users responded loud and clear. “A mole changing in any way should be checked out by a doctor 100 percent of the time,” one person said.
Another user noted that "changes in moles" need investigation, adding that it doesn't necessarily mean it's cancerous, but still "it needs investigation to make sure it isn't, or to determine if it has become precancerous".
A self-identified medical professional jumped in the comment section to back them up, warning: “Not all melanonychias are cancer,” but if they change, “that is a cause for concern".
Per DermNet, Melanonychia refers to brown or black discoloration of a nail. Healthline states it might be harmless, like a splinter hemorrhage, or something more serious, like a sign of subungual melanoma.
Meanwhile, the Cleveland Clinic describes it as a dark vertical stripe that could indicate “an aggressive form of melanoma".
In the end, the Redditor confirmed they were taking the advice to heart and heading to a doctor, thanking the online community for the wake-up call.
It might seem dramatic, but nail and finger symptoms can be serious.
A man named Brian Gemmell, a Scottish fitness instructor, was diagnosed with lung cancer after noticing a strange swelling in his fingertips - a condition called finger clubbing.
“I googled it - as you do - and a respiratory problem flagged up,” he said. He went to a doctor who immediately ordered a chest X-ray, leading to a CT scan that uncovered an advanced tumor in his right lung. Gemmell’s quick action and the medical team’s fast response saved his life, per PEOPLE.
“Go and see your doctor if you've got anything that you're concerned about,” he told The Mirror UK. “Go as soon as you can.”
Finger clubbing and nail discoloration aren’t always dangerous, but when they are, catching them early makes all the difference.