July 28, 2026 | Plastic Surgery News
A patient came in last month with a folder. Inside it were receipts from months of trying: dermatology visits, cryotherapy, prescription ointments, injections. The bump on her lip had outlasted every one of them.
That folder is more common than you would think. When a lip growth is painful, persistent, and has resisted every medical treatment, surgery becomes the most reliable answer, and the version I use most is called a wedge excision. These are the questions patients actually ask me about it, answered the way I answer them in the exam room.
“I’ve Tried Everything and It Won’t Go Away. Now What?”
That is one of the most common stories I hear. Months of dermatology visits, cryotherapy, injections, prescription ointments, and the lesion is still there. When something on the lip is painful, persistent, and has not responded to medical treatment, surgical removal becomes the most reliable option. The key is to take it out completely so it does not come back.
A partial removal invites the same frustrating cycle you have already lived through. Complete removal, with a clear margin, ends it.
“How Do You Remove a Growth on the Lip?”
If the lesion takes up a meaningful portion of the lip, I remove it as a wedge. That means I take it out in a V shape and bring the edges back together, rather than just shaving the surface. A wedge closure lets the lip stay continuous and natural looking.
If I only cut out the spot itself without reshaping, you would be left with a notch or a dip in the lip. By closing it as a wedge, it reads as a normal lip, just a little shorter than before.
“Will My Lip Look Different Afterward?”
It will be a little smaller, and that is expected. The good news is that lips tend to stretch and settle over time. For people whose lip is on the longer side to begin with, that extra length gives us room to bring things back together without it looking tight.
You will feel some tightness at first, and it takes a little getting used to, but most people tell me it feels far better than living with the growth.
“What About the Scar?”
There will be a fine line where I close the wedge, including a portion that runs down toward the chin, because I have to taper the closure so the lip does not pucker. In men who wear a beard, that line tends to hide well. Like any scar, it continues to soften and fade over the weeks and months after surgery.
“Is This a Big Operation?”
No, and I would not pretend otherwise. It is a short outpatient procedure, usually thirty to forty-five minutes, done under local anesthesia. You go home the same day. Expect about two weeks before the lip starts looking normal again as the swelling settles.
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Anesthesia | Local, outpatient |
| Time in the OR | 30 to 45 minutes |
| Home same day | Yes |
| Back to normal appearance | About two weeks |
| Visible scar | Fine line that fades over months |
| Pathology | Every specimen, every time |
“Do You Test What You Remove?”
Always. I send the tissue to pathology so it can be examined closely, even when a prior biopsy was reassuring. Some lip growths are viral in origin, which means there is a small chance of recurrence. I work to remove the lesion completely with a clear margin all the way around, and then we keep an eye on the area afterward. If anything starts to come back, we address it early.
Why Precision Matters More Than Size
I am double board-certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery and the American Board of Surgery, a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons, and I completed my plastic surgery fellowship at the Mayo Clinic. I have taught plastic surgery at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center Paul L. Foster School of Medicine since 2011.
A lip growth sits in one of the most visible, expressive parts of the face. The job is never just removal. It is leaving you with a lip that looks and works like a normal lip: precise excision, a closure planned in advance, and pathology to confirm we got all of it.
For my editorial take on why small procedures deserve serious surgeons, see the companion piece on drworldwide.com. The Southwest Plastic Surgery team covers the practice side at swplasticsurgery.com.
Ready to Talk?
If you have a lip growth that has outlasted every treatment, bring it to me and I will tell you honestly whether surgery is the right move. Call (915) 590-7900, text 1-866-814-0038, or book online at agulloplasticsurgery.com. #StayBeautiful
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