Asking Your Doctor About Skin Cancer Treatment

Learn more about skin cancer and how it’s treated. 

Suppose you or a loved one has just been diagnosed with skin cancer. In that case, chances are good that you’re delving into the different treatment options available—our Tulsa, OK, board-certified dermatologists, Drs. Alison and Robert Fischer offer a wide range of skin cancer treatment options based on the type, location, and severity of your skin cancer. We can sit down with you and your family to discuss these options more in-depth, but here’s what you should know,

Mohs Surgery 

Considered one of the most effective ways to treat basal cell and squamous cell carcinomas as well as certain types of melanoma, Mohs surgery has become the gold standard of skin cancer treatment. This surgical procedure involves removing the cancerous lesion one layer at a time, thereby preserving as much healthy tissue around the cancer as possible.

A layer of tissue is removed and then analyzed under a microscope to detect the presence of cancer cells. Tissue is removed, layer by layer, under no more cancer cells are present. Due to the conservative nature of this surgery, it can take several hours. It’s also ideal for more delicate areas of the body or face that require as much tissue preservation as possible such as the nose, eyelids, or ears.

Curettage and Electrosurgery

Another surgical technique to treat skin cancer, curettage and electrosurgery scrapes away the skin (curettage) and then heats the area (electrosurgery) to destroy any cancer cells that remain. This procedure is most often performed on squamous and basal cell carcinomas. This skin cancer treatment is performed here at our Tulsa, OK, practice by our board-certified dermatologists under local anesthesia, which will thoroughly numb the area before removing the cancerous growth. Most wounds will heal within 3-6 weeks after curettage and electrosurgery.

Excision Surgery 

Excision simply means to cut away the cancerous lesion, mole, or tumor, along with surrounding tissue to ensure that no cancer cells remain. This procedure can be performed on most types of skin cancer, including squamous cell carcinoma, basal cell carcinoma, and melanoma, and is used to treat primary and recurrent tumors.

Photodynamic Therapy 

Sometimes lasers are used to remove cancers and precancers on the surface of the kind, including basal cell carcinomas. Co2 and argon lasers only target the skin’s surface, not the deeper layers of the skin, making them ideal for removing skin cancer. Laser therapy can also remove skin cancer just about anywhere on the body. Laser therapy results in fewer post-procedural side effects than surgery and boasts a faster healing time.

We understand that receiving a skin cancer diagnosis can be scary, but when you seek treatment from our Tulsa, Muskogee, and Broken Arrow, OK, team, you are in safe, capable, and trustworthy hands. To schedule a consultation with our dermatologists, call Southside Dermatology and Skin Cancer Surgery at (918) 760-0700, (918) 840-5276, or (918) 770-4599.