Have Skin Cancer? How Your Dermatologist May Recommend To Treat It

Finding out that you have skin cancer can feel like a nightmare, but it is one of the most treatable forms of cancer out there. Depending on the stage that you are in, your doctor may recommend one of the treatments listed in this article. 

Excision Surgery

In some instances, if you have a cancerous mole that is in the early stages of skin cancer and it hasn't spread, your doctor may be able to simply numb the mole and the skin around it and then gently scrape it off with a small razor blade and then the skin will be stitched up. Typically with this type of surgery, your dermatologist will still send it off to the lab for testing to make sure that they got all of the cancer and that no more skin needs to be removed 

Cryosurgery

If your skin cancer is in the most beginning stages and your dermatologist just thinks that it is on the surface of the skin, they may recommend a basic surgery called cryosurgery. Similar to cryotherapy that's used to freeze off topical dermatological issues like warts, cryosurgery is also an effective way to treat skin cancer. During this procedure, liquid nitrogen is used to freeze the skin cancer cells. Once the skin cancer cells have been frozen, they will die off, and then the skin will scab over and fall off. 

MOHS Surgery

MOHS surgery is a type of surgery that is named after a doctor and has gained a lot of popularity amongst dermatologists and patients over the past several years. During this very precise surgery, your doctor will start out by removing one tiny layer of skin and then examining it under a microscope. If there are skin cancer cells on that piece of skin, they will then repeat the process until there aren't any. Typically, the doctor will have to remove enough skin where stitches are required to close up the wound. 

Radiation or Chemotherapy

If you have an advanced stage of skin cancer, then your dermatologist may recommend a more aggressive treatment like radiation or chemotherapy. During both of these treatments, the main objective is to essentially kill off all existing cancer cells to help you go into remission. Depending on the type of skin cancer you have and the location, your dermatologist may recommend one of these over the other or they may even recommend them in conjunction with each other. 

Reach out to a doctor to learn more about skin cancer treatments.