What is Moh's surgery?

Mohs micrographic surgery refers to a very precise type of skin cancer surgery named after its inventor and pioneer Dr. Frederic Mohs. It is used to treat a variety of skin cancers, including the two most common skin cancers-- basal and squamous cell carcinoma, as well as some superficial melanomas and rare skin tumors of the sweat glands and connective tissue.

How is Moh's surgery different from other skin cancer surgical treatments?

Mohs surgery is different from standard "excisional surgery" in that it allows the surgeon to remove as little normal tissue as possible around the border of the skin cancer. The advantage to this is that it minimizes the chance of developing unsightly scars and reduces the likelihood that nearby structures (such as the eyelid) are not distorted or destroyed.

How effective is Moh's surgery?

In addition to keeping surgical incisions as small as possible, the chief advantage to Mohs surgery is that it offers the best advantage for complete tumor removal, since it is performed with microscopic confirmation and precise mapping of the tumor edge. If one compared a group of 100 patients who underwent Mohs surgery for a first-time basal cell carcinoma on the face to a group of 100 patients who underwent standard surgery for a first-time basal carcinoma on the face, after five years only 1 patient in the Mohs surgery group might return with a recurrence of their cancer while up 10 to 12 patients might return from the group that underwent standard surgery.

Learn more about what to expect during Mohs Surgery.