Mohs Surgery

 

Mohs micrographic surgery is a surgical technique whose purpose is to prevent the reappearance of tumors and avoid the destruction of adjacent healthy tissue. It is indicated in all malignant tumors of the skin, except melanoma , especially if they are located in areas with a high rate of relapse, in areas that may have an undesirable aesthetic result, in immunodepressed and in tumors with a high rate of recurrence.. 50% of the population over 65 years develops a skin cancer being the basal cell carcinoma, the most frequent.

 

 

Phases of Mohs Surgery

 

Mohs Surgery is developed in several phases:

to- Extirpation of the visible tumor

b- 2 mm resection of all edges and bottom of the wound resulting from the previous excision. The edges are marked to identify them.

c- Histological examination.

d- Reconstruction with wound closure. In large tumors and great aggressiveness, reconstruction can be delayed.

Repeat steps b and c as many times as necessary until a negative histological result is achieved.

 

Duration and anesthesia

 

It is usually done under local anesthesia and on an outpatient basis, although in some cases it may require general anesthesia and admission.

The procedure can be quick, about 45 minutes, if the tumor is small and in the first histological examination the perimetral resection is not affected by the cancer , but it can take several hours, if the procedure has to be repeated several times due to the histological results .

 

Advantages of Mohs surgery

 

Mohs surgery allows the detection of cancerous cells that affect areas close to the malignant tumor , not visible to the naked eye, allowing their removal and thus avoiding unwanted recurrences. In addition to respect as much as possible, healthy tissue, much better aesthetic results are obtained than when the resection is performed without histological control. The cure rate is 98% for primary carcinomas and 94% for those who have been previously treated.