Mohs surgery is an outpatient procedure that removes skin cancer cells while leaving healthy tissue intact. Microscopic examination and layer-by-layer excision enable complete tumor removal and high cure rates. You should feel comfortable calling your doctor after Mohs surgery if you have questions about the procedure or how you’re healing. You should also consult Dr. William Long New York if you have any of the following symptoms:

1.      Bleeding

A little bleeding or oozing from the wound is normal, particularly in the first few hours after surgery. Applying pressure to the wound should stop the bleeding, but if it does not, contact your surgeon.

2.      Pain

You should expect mild to moderate pain or discomfort following Mohs surgery. Contact your surgeon if acetaminophen is not relieving your pain, the pain does not subside after a few days, or the pain begins to improve, then worsens.

3.      Indicators of infection

An infected wound can prolong your recovery and cause your scar to heal less effectively. Contact your specialist if you have a fever, detect a thick, yellowish discharge or foul smell odor, the region around your wound is bright red, or the skin is swollen and hot to the touch.

Benefits of having Mohs surgery

The common benefits of Mohs surgery are the comprehensive microscopic examination, which allows for total cancer elimination and excellent cure rates, as well as the ability to save as much normal skin as possible. Other benefits of Mohs surgery for skin cancer include:

·         It is completed in a single outpatient appointment.

·         A local anesthetic will numb the region, allowing you to recover faster than with general anesthesia or sedation.

An overview of Mohs surgery

Mohs surgery is a technique used to treat skin cancer lesions. The surgeon removes small layers of skin one at a time during this operation and analyzes each layer under a microscope to see whether any cancer remains. This process is repeated until only cancer-free tissue remains.

Mohs surgery has been developed into the most accurate and sophisticated therapy for skin cancer, with success rates of up to 99%. Also, Mohs surgery is particularly effective because it examines the tissue surrounding cancer more extensively than other types of skin cancer surgery.

The difference between excision and Mohs surgery

Excision is a surgical operation in which the skin cancer and a margin of surrounding skin are removed, and the material is submitted to pathology for processing and interpretation. Also, extensive local excision is generally used on at least 1% of the margins. Conversely, Mohs micrographic surgery involves a reduced margin excision, and the tissue is processed such that your clinician examines 100% of the deep and side (lateral) margins.

Can the cancer return after Mohs surgery?

Mohs surgery provides the greatest cure rate of any treatment for basal cell and squamous cell carcinomas, with a cure rate of more than 99% for new skin malignancies and 95% if cancer returns. Your doctor will want to see you frequently to check your skin for new malignancies. It is common to visit them twice a year, but if the cancer is severe and prone to recur, you may need to see them more frequently. You and your physician will choose the best schedule.

If you have basal cell carcinomas (BCCs) or squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs), Mohs micrographic surgery is the most appropriate therapy method with the best success rate. Call Manhattan Dermatology or book your appointment online to determine if you are the ideal candidate for Mohs surgery procedures.