Skin Cancer Treatment
Skin cancer treatment refers to a number of different procedures designed to remove cancerous skin cells from the face, neck and elsewhere on the body and may include:
- Excision – simple surgical removal of cancer cells and surrounding skin
- Curettage and desiccation – scraping away cancer cells with an electric current
- Cryosurgery – freezing cancer cells
- Radiation – destroying cancer cells using x-rays
- Chemotherapy – topical application of anti-cancer medicine
- Mohs surgery – shaving skin cells off in layers to create minimal scarring
Who Is a Candidate For Skin Cancer Treatment?
Basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and malignant melanoma skin cancers can be debilitating and deadly if left untreated, so regular skin cancer screenings and necessary skin cancer treatments are recommended for all adult patients, especially those with light skin types prone to sunburn (Fitzpatrick I or II). Skin cancer most commonly develops on areas of skin that experience the most sun exposure, such as the lips, face and ears, however this is not always the case.
What Is Involved in Skin Cancer Treatment?
The goal of any skin cancer treatment is to remove cancerous skin cells so that they do not spread to underlying tissue, bone, lymph nodes and internal organs. Surgical skin cancer treatments, such as excision and Mohs surgery, typically are outpatient procedures performed in-office with local anesthesia and require very little or no downtime.
Skin cancer surgery may be necessary to keep you healthy, but it doesn’t have to result in unsightly scars. Avoiding sun exposure and protecting scars as they heal after skin cancer surgery is an important step to producing the best aesthetic result. Scar revision may also may be an option to improve the appearance large scars or facial scars that may result from skin cancer surgery.
Contact New Horizons Plastic Surgery
It is important to have regular skin cancer screenings and seek immediate treatment If you suspect you have a cancerous or pre-cancerous growth. Contact New Horizons Plastic Surgery at (936) 564-3744 to schedule a consultation with Nacogdoches skin cancer surgeon Dr. Gregory Wittpenn. Dr. Wittpenn treats skin cancer patients from all over sunny eastern Texas and western Louisiana, including patients from Tyler, Lufkin, Longview and Shreveport.