Advantages of the Mohs Micrographic Procedure

Some skin cancers can be deceptively small, but far more extensive under the skin than they appear to be on the surface. These cancers may have extensions below the skin, or along blood vessels, nerves, or cartilage. Skin cancers that have recurred following previous treatment may send out extensions deep under the scar tissue at the site. Mohs Micrographic Surgery is specifically designed to remove these cancerous “roots”. Prior to the actual Mohs surgery it is impossible to precisely predict how much skin will have to be removed. The final surgical defect could be only slightly larger than the initial skin cancer, but occasionally the removal of the deep extensions of a skin cancer results in a sizeable defect. Keep in mind, however, that while the maximum amount of normal tissue is spared, Mohs surgery removes only the cancerous area in a methodical multiple thin layer approach so excessive removal of healthy tissue is minimized.