MOHS Surgery
MOHS surgery is the gold standard for skin cancer treatment.
It has the highest cure rates (98-99%), lowest recurrence rates and best cosmetic results of any skin cancer treatment.
What is Mohs?
Mohs surgery is a combination of dermatology and pathology, and is a highly technical micro-surgical procedure that provides extremely precise removal of cancerous tissue, ensuring all cancer cells are removed at the time of surgery.
The Mohs specialist removes the skin cancer in stages, using a microscope to examine the tissue for cancer cells as they go. Layers of tissue are removed and examined one at a time until no cancer cells are present. Because only tissue containing cancer cells is removed, as much healthy tissue as possible is spared therefore maximising the aesthetic result after repair of the wound.
Mohs surgery is an outpatient procedure and can be all done in a single visit in a day surgery setting under local anaesthesia. Unlike routine excisional surgery, patients get their definitive clearance results on the day of their procedure, saving them the anxious wait for lab results to discover if their cancer is gone and whether they require further treatment.
This service is available at these locations
Advantages of Mohs Surgery
- Ensuring complete cancer removal during surgery, virtually eliminating the chance of the cancer growing back
- Minimizing the amount of healthy tissue lost
- Maximizing the functional and cosmetic outcome resulting from surgery
- Repairing the site of the cancer the same day the cancer is removed, in most cases
- Curing skin cancer when other methods have failed
Some skin cancers can be deceptively large – far more extensive under the skin than they appear to be from the surface. These cancers may have “roots” in the skin, or along blood vessels, nerves, or cartilage. Mohs surgery is specifically designed to remove these cancers by tracking and removing these cancerous “roots.”
Mohs Surgery is appropriate when:
- the cancer is an area where it is important to preserve healthy tissue for maximum functional and aesthetic outcomes such as the eyelids, nose, ears, scalp, lips, fingers, toes, or genitals
- the cancer was treated previously and has reoccurred
- there is scar tissue in the cancerous area
- the cancer is large
- the cancer is growing rapidly or uncontrollably
- the edges of the cancer cannot be clearly defined
This service is available at these locations
Special Qualifications of the Mohs Specialist
Mohs specialists have specialized skills in dermatology, dermatologic surgery, dermatopathology, and Mohs surgery. To become a Mohs specialist, an FACD qualified specialist dermatologist must undertake an additional one to two years of intensive specialist training and meet specific requirements. Mohs specialists must also engage in ongoing quality assurance activities to maintain their accreditation.
Our Mohs Specialists
Dr Saleem Loghdey
Dermatologist and Mohs Specialist
Located at our Miranda & Wollongong clinics