It’s Just Right: Mohs Surgery and the Three “Cares”

Treating skin cancer isn’t a fairy tale, but the story of Mohs surgery – which many consider the gold standard in treating non-melanoma skin cancers – does have a certain “Goldilocks” ring to it.

That’s because dermatologists who are trained in the Mohs technique won’t take too much skin when they’re removing cancerous tissue. Skin cancers often appear on the face, in small and visible spaces such as on the nose or a cheek, where there’s simply not much skin to spare.

And the dermatologists also won’t take too little skin. That would leave you with disfiguring skin cancer cells that might continue growing.

Instead, Midwest Dermatology’s skin cancer specialists do use state-of-the-art, real-time pathology testing to make sure what they remove is, you guess it, “JUST RIGHT.” Rather than estimating how far out a skin cancer has spread, or how deep its roots go, our dermatologists examine each layer of tissue under a microscope to determine if cancer cells are present.

Then, when the tissue sample no longer shows cancer cells are present, the wound is closed with stitches or is bandaged so it can heal naturally.

Besides ensuring that the JUST RIGHT amount of skin tissue is removed, there are three more reasons you should care and consider it.

Care One: Mohs Is Efficient and Cost-Effective.

• Mohs is outpatient procedure available at Midwest Dermatology’s Midtown, Bellevue and Norfolk locations.
• Mohs surgery is done under local anesthesia – there’s no fasting and no extended recovery time.
• Midwest Dermatology’s lab work for Mohs surgery is done on-site by technicians specializing in the procuedure; and the lab work is read and interpreted by your experienced Mohs surgeon.

Care Two: Mohs Surgery Leads to the Best Cosmetic Results.

• During the Mohs procedure, your Midwest Dermatology physician examines 100% of the margins, or skin edges, of all tissue removed to see where the skin cancer starts and where it ends.
• This allows the Midwest Derm team to keep your healthy skin intact, where it belongs.
• Mohs surgery leaves the smallest scar(s) possible.

Care Three: Mohs Surgery Leads to the Best Outcome

• The cure rate for Mohs surgery is close to 99% for a skin cancer that has not been treated before.
• In harder-to-treat cases of recurrent skin cancer, Mohs provides a 94% cure rate.

So, the moral to this story is that while skin cancer is as serious as the Big Bad Wolf, Midwest Dermatology has ways to treat the disease successfully. And with the right treatment, it’s possible to find a happy ending.

Remember, if you have a suspicious skin growth, or just want to have a full body skin exam to check things out, call us at (402) 933-0800 or click on the Book An Appointment link on our website to view all the available appointments and schedule one at your convenience.