Skin Cancer Myths: Why "Just Cutting It Out" Isn’t Always the Best Option

From the moment cancer is found in a person’s body, the race is usually on to remove as much of the disease as is possible. In most cases, this starts with excision — the surgical removal of cells and tissues affected by cancer.

This “cut-it-out-first” approach works quickly and effectively for most cancers. This is certainly the goal with skin cancer, which is diagnosed in nearly 10,000 Americans each day. 

That said, how we go about removing the cancerous cells and tissues matters and, with skin cancer, we prefer a more finessed approach called Mohs surgery. At Vivida Dermatology, our team includes specialists trained in this cutting-edge, tissue-preserving surgical technique for non-melanoma skin cancers.

Here, we dive into why about 750,000 to 800,000 or more Mohs surgeries are performed each year in the United States and why our patients enthusiastically contribute to these numbers. 

Why Mohs surgery works so well to eliminate skin cancer

We already mentioned that the first order of business with most cancers is to cut it out as quickly as possible. This is an important step because most cancers multiply and spread, so containment is critical.

Historically, this usually means erring on the side of caution and eliminating any tissues and organs that are either affected by the cancer or at risk. Surgeons often talk about this in terms of margins — they remove the cancer, along with healthy tissue surrounding the cancer to create a buffer zone, or margin. 

Unfortunately, this approach leaves patients with healthy tissue loss, which we aim to minimize with Mohs. The goal behind Mohs surgery is to better distinguish the margins of skin cancer so that we only remove what’s necessary and leave healthy skin intact.

To do this, we remove the skin cancer layer by layer, repeatedly checking the tissue under a microscope as we go. Once we reach a layer of tissue that no longer shows evidence of cancerous cells, we stop. This differs from older techniques that simply cut out an oversized section of tissue.

The benefits of Mohs surgery

Thanks to the microscopic margin analysis we conduct during Mohs surgery, the success rates of this procedure are up to 99% — the highest potential for cure among most non-melanoma skin cancers.

While success is the first thing you want in a skin cancer treatment, Mohs offers more benefits, such as:

Minimal scarring

Skin cancer tends to develop in highly exposed areas, such as on your face or hands. With Mohs surgery, we minimize scarring by removing only the tissues we need without creating larger-than-necessary margins. This is ideal for cosmetically sensitive areas.

Lower risk of complications and recurrence

Because Mohs surgery is thorough while minimizing tissue damage, your post-operative risks, like infection and blood loss, are reduced. The risk of the cancer recurring is also almost non-existent.

Mohs surgery — the best of both worlds

As you can see, Mohs offers the best of all worlds — we not only cut the disease out, but we do so in a way that’s thorough and reduces risks.

If you have more questions about Mohs surgery and the many benefits of treating skin cancer with this approach, we invite you to contact one of our offices in Las Vegas or Henderson, Nevada, and St. George, Utah, to schedule an appointment.