Life After Mohs: How to Protect Your Skin and Prevent Future Cancers

Just like the 3.4 million Americans diagnosed each year, you’ve also been through a skin cancer scare. Thankfully, you chose to treat it with Mohs surgery, which boasts a noteworthy cure rate of 99%. 

Yet, while Mohs can eliminate existing skin cancer, it can’t prevent future cancers from developing. This is worrisome if you consider that 60% of people who’ve been diagnosed with one skin cancer go on to develop a second.

Our team of fellowship-trained and certified Mohs surgeons at Vivida Dermatology understands this threat, which is why we want to discuss how to care for your skin after Mohs surgery, with an eye toward preventing a recurrence of skin cancer.

Immediately after your Mohs surgery

When we perform your Mohs surgery, we do so on an outpatient basis. Your post-operative care typically includes:

• Wound care and cleaning
• Applying ointments to the surgical site
• Taking prescription medications, such as antibiotics
• Avoiding makeup for a week or so
• Avoiding strenuous exercise until we give you the green light

Most of our patients find there’s no real downtime aside from socially, as many patients don't like going out wearing a visible bandage. 

Typically, most Mohs surgery patients get back to their regular routines within a week, with one caveat — they need to double, and even triple, down on protecting their skin moving forward.

Preventing another skin cancer scare

We already mentioned that people who develop one skin cancer, such as a basal or squamous cell carcinoma or a melanoma, have an increased risk of developing a second one. And if you develop a second basal or squamous cell carcinoma (or a third or fourth), your chances of developing another are 61.5% within two years.

Please note that recurrent skin cancers rarely form on the site where we performed the Mohs surgery and instead grow in a new spot.

Understanding this potential threat, we counsel patients to be extra vigilant about protecting their skin, which means:

See us regularly for skin checks

We typically recommend annual skin checks for most of our patients, especially given the sunny climate we live in. If you’ve had Mohs surgery, we’re going to recommend more regular screening — perhaps twice or three times a year based on your circumstances. 

Don’t drop the ball on sun protection

Alongside frequent skin checks, the other most important step is to double down on your sun protection efforts, which should include:

• Wearing sunscreen anytime you go outdoors (SPF of 30 or higher)
• Reapplying sunscreen every two hours (more if you’re in the water)
• Covering up with clothing
• Wearing a hat and sunglasses to protect your face and around your eyes
• Avoiding peak sun hours, which are typically between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.

We also feel that we shouldn’t even have to say this anymore, but tanning beds are enemy number one when it comes to skin cancer, so avoid them at all costs.

Understand the symptoms of skin cancer

While we can check your skin a few times a year, it’s also helpful if you do so at home. Stay on the lookout for any warning signs, such as:

• Red, scaly patches of skin
• Small, pearly bumps on your skin
• Sores that don’t heal
• Moles that change shape or size

You likely have some experience with these symptoms, having already gone through one round with skin cancer, but know that a recurrence can appear differently.

Also, stay on the lookout in areas that are more exposed to the sun, such as your face, head, chest, and legs.

Rest assured, we’re invested in your future success in staying skin-cancer-free, and will do all that we can to help you stay one step ahead of a recurrence.

If you have more questions about preventing skin cancer from recurring, please contact one of our offices, located in Las Vegas and Henderson, Nevada, as well as St. George, Utah.