5 Incredible Benefits of Mohs Surgery
What are the benefits of Mohs surgery? Our Little Rock-based team recommends this treatment for the removal of skin cancer in certain patients.
Mohs surgery is a specialized surgical technique that is primarily used to remove cancerous cells, especially in sensitive or highly visible areas. Unlike traditional surgery, which removes the cancerous tissue and a significant amount of healthy tissue surrounding it, Mohs surgery involves removing only the cancerous tissue while preserving as much healthy tissue as possible.
Let’s explore five amazing benefits of Mohs surgery:
1. High Cure Rates
Mohs surgery has the highest cure rates of any skin cancer treatment. In fact, it has a 98 percent cure rate for basal cell carcinoma and a 95 percent cure rate for squamous cell carcinoma. This high cure rate is due to the precision of the surgical technique, which ensures that all cancerous cells are removed from the treatment area.
2. Preservation of Healthy Tissue
One of the most significant benefits of Mohs surgery is that it preserves healthy tissue. Traditional surgery often removes a significant amount of healthy tissue surrounding the cancerous tissue, which can result in larger scars and longer recovery times. With Mohs surgery, the surgeon removes only the cancerous tissue, leaving as much healthy tissue intact as possible.
3. Minimal Scarring
Since Mohs surgery removes only the cancerous tissue, it can result in minimal scarring. Additionally, because the surgeon removes only small sections of tissue at a time, the remaining tissue can better conform to the wound and minimize scarring.
4. Same-Day Procedure
Mohs surgery is typically performed as an outpatient procedure, meaning patients can go home the same day. The procedure usually takes several hours to complete, but patients can relax during the process and even read or watch TV.
5. High Precision
Mohs surgery is a highly precise surgical technique that allows the surgeon to remove cancerous tissue layer by layer until all cancer cells have been removed. The technique involves examining each layer of tissue under a microscope to ensure that all cancer cells have been removed before proceeding to the next layer. This precision ensures that the cancerous tissue is removed while preserving healthy tissue, resulting in better cosmetic outcomes.
Want to know more about the benefits of Mohs surgery? Our Little Rock-based Dermatology Group of Arkansas team will tell you more about how this skin cancer treatment works. Call us at 501-227-8422 or submit a contact form to schedule a consultation.
What are Symptoms of Melanoma Other Than Moles?
“How does melanoma make you feel?” Our Little Rock-based team at Dermatology Group of Arkansas fields all kinds of questions from patients seeking our help, but this may be one of the most important.
Melanoma is the deadliest type of skin cancer. When it comes to this form of the disease, patients can benefit from knowing what to look out for so that they can treat it early and have a higher chance of a successful cure.
Of course, everyone should always be on the lookout for moles and spots—especially those that appear unusual. The ABCDE rule is a great thing to remember when examining your skin for signs of cancer. This refers to A for Asymmetry, B for Border, C for Color, D for Diameter, and E for evolving. Any mole that is asymmetrical, has a blurred or scalloped border that isn’t well defined, has an unusual colour, is larger than the size of a pencil eraser, or is constantly changing and showing new symptoms (such as bleeding and itching) may be a cause for concern.
The Ugly Duckling rule, which refers to examining the skin for any mole that looks especially different from the others, is another helpful tool.
All of this is important to remember because the first sign of melanoma is often the presence of a new mole or changes to an existing mole. However, moles aren’t the only symptoms associated with this cancer. It’s important to know about other, less common signs as well:
Other Changes to the Skin
More symptoms associated with melanoma include scaly, discolored patches that look like warts or scabs, irritation, open sores, skin craters, discoloration, and redness.
Non-Skin-Related Symptoms
If you have advanced melanoma, the cancerous cells may spread to other areas of the body and cause non-skin-related symptoms, such as unexplained weight loss, loss of appetite, and fatigue.
The types of symptoms you may experience can vary depending on the location of the melanoma. For example, if the cancer is close to the lungs, you may experience shortness of breath.
If you have any of these warning signs and want professional guidance, contact the Little Rock-based Dermatology Group of Arkansas. Call us at 501-227-8422 or 1-800-225-8422 or submit a contact form online and schedule a consultation if you would like to discuss diagnosis and treatments for skin cancer.
Does Sunscreen Completely Protect You from Harm?
Chances are good that you already know how too much sun exposure can be highly damaging to your skin. This is because it accelerates premature aging while increasing the risk of skin cancer. But is sunscreen the best form of protection? Our Little Rock-based team recommends that patients wear sunscreen during all times of the year—even when it’s cloudy or they’re spending most of their time indoors. However, sunscreen does have its limits.
Sunscreens are ideal for preventing painful sunburns, spots, wrinkles, fine lines, and the breakdown of the skin’s collagen. Just like cleansers and moisturizers, sunscreen is an essential part of a good skin care routine. Sunscreens should be broad-spectrum, meaning that they provide protection against the most dangerous types of ultraviolet radiation, and have an SPF of at least 30.
With this in mind, you should also remember that there’s no type of sunscreen that blocks UV radiation 100 percent. In fact, studies show that sunscreens only block about 55 percent of the free radicals produced by UV rays. Furthermore, your sunscreen won’t provide enough protection if it’s expired, you don’t use enough of it, you miss certain areas on your body, or you don’t apply it frequently enough. Sunscreen also won’t provide unlimited protection against sun exposure.
Instead of solely relying on sunscreen, it should be part of a multifaceted plan to protect your skin against sun exposure. To get the best protection for your skin, you should combine sunscreen with these other measures:
One way of enhancing the effects of your sunscreen is by pairing it with an antioxidant. Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that’s excellent for your skin. Sunscreen and vitamin C work in tandem to boost each other’s effectiveness. Vitamin C also helps to counteract the damage caused by ultraviolet light and unstable molecules called antioxidants. It brightens the skin while reducing fine lines and brown spots. Combining this ingredient with sunscreen will be more effective for sun protection than just using sunscreen on its own.
Furthermore, stay in the shade or under an umbrella if you can, and use physical barriers like hats, sun-protective clothing, and sunglasses.
Get more advice on sun protection from the team at Dermatology Group of Arkansas. Call us at 501-227-8422 or 1-800-225-8422 or submit a contact form online and schedule a consultation if you would like to discuss cosmetic treatments.
Can Mohs Surgery Treat Skin Cancer on the Lips?
The lips are often a neglected area when it comes to sun safety, which is dangerous, because they tend to take as much of a beating from sun exposure as the rest of the face—but have thinner and more sensitive skin. Overexposure to natural or artificial sunlight, heavy alcohol use, and smoking are the three main risk factors for skin cancer in this area. So how is skin cancer removed from the lips? Our Little Rock-area patients are often curious about this, as well as treatments for skin cancers that develop on other sensitive areas such as the eyelids, nose, cheeks, ears, neck, and fingers, where the patient may wish to preserve as much normal, healthy tissue as possible.
Most skin cancers that form on the lips occur on the lower lip. Mohs surgery may be the best way of treating this form of cancer so that as much of the function, sensation, and healthy tissue of the lips as possible is kept intact, without changing the appearance of the face too drastically.
The best treatment method for you depends on the extent and depth of the cancer. During Mohs surgery, all the cancerous cells will be removed, layer by layer, from the treatment area. The process is very methodical and precise.
Detecting skin cancer on the lips early increases the chances of it being successfully cured. Some of the most common symptoms to look out for include a sore on the lips or inside of the mouth that doesn’t heal, a lump on the lips, noticeable thickening, pain, numbness, bleeding, or a red or white patch on the lips.
To minimize the risk of skin cancer, you should always protect your face with a wide-brimmed hat and broad-spectrum sunscreen, wear lip balms that contain SPF, minimize exposure to sun during peak UV hours, reduce alcohol intake, avoid tanning beds, get regular dental check-ups, and quit using tobacco—or don’t start in the first place.
The team at the Little Rock-based Dermatology Group of Arkansas can guide you on Mohs surgery for lip cancer or for treating skin cancer on other areas. Call us at 501-227-8422 or 1-800-225-8422 or submit out a contact form online and schedule a consultation if you’re interested in finding out more about this surgery.