4 Reasons Your Dermatologist May Recommend Mohs Surgery

There’s good news and bad news when it comes to skin cancer. The good news: If you catch it early, before it spreads, treating it is as easy as removing the cancerous cells. The bad news: That can be tricky. 

If the cancerous cells are developing rapidly or there isn’t a clear border on the cancerous patch, it might feel like a guessing game. But thanks to Mohs surgery, it can actually be an extremely precise, highly effective process. 

That’s why Kenneth Warrick, MD, FAAD, and our team may recommend Mohs surgery for certain patients diagnosed with skin cancer. With this treatment, which we offer right here at Atlantic Dermatology in Longs, South Carolina, we have a highly effective tool to target your skin cancer. 

So, when would Dr. Warrick recommend Mohs surgery for you? Here are four reasons he may suggest it.

#1: It’s the gold standard 

The Skin Cancer Foundation and other authorities agree: Mohs surgery is the gold standard in skin cancer removal. 

It’s a specialized process that starts with your surgeon removing the topmost layer of skin in the area with the skin cancer. Dr. Warrick attempts to get all of the cancer cells without removing any more healthy tissue than is absolutely necessary. The removed tissue then goes to our lab for analysis immediately. There’s no waiting days for your results. 

#2: It’s designed to get all the cancerous cells

If we determine that Dr. Warrick got all of the cancerous cells after the first removal, you can head home. 

But if we find cancer on the lowest levels of the removed tissue, we know there may be more still in your skin. We repeat the process, analyzing the tissue each time. With Mohs surgery, this continues until we can confirm under a microscope that we’ve removed all of the cancerous cells. 

#3: It helps to protect healthy tissue

There are faster and easier ways to excise skin cancer, but that would require your surgeon to remove a larger-than-necessary area just to be safe. 

Mohs surgery gives you a way to target cancerous cells while protecting as much of the healthy tissue in the area as possible. This gets especially important in areas where you want the smallest wound possible, like your:

• Face
• Hands
• Feet
• Genitals

Plus, because Mohs surgery only removes as much tissue as necessary, you get less scarring than with other skin cancer excision techniques. 

#4: It means knocking it out in one appointment

With Mohs surgery, you stay in our office while we analyze the removed tissue for the presence of cancerous cells. (We recommend bringing a book or something else to pass the time.) This may mean the procedure takes a good portion of the day, but it saves you from coming back to our office several times. 

Ultimately, Dr. Warrick recommends Mohs surgery when you would benefit from this kind of skin cancer removal technique. To learn more and find out if it could be right for you, call our office today to schedule a consultation or use the online booking feature any time.