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What is Mohs?

Mohs microscopic surgery is an advanced treatment procedure for the total removal of skin cancer. It offers the highest potential for recovery — up to 99 percent — even if other forms of treatment have failed. It is most often used in the treatment of basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma, the two most common types of skin cancer.

Mohs differs from all other methods of treating skin cancer because it allows the surgeon to identify precisely and remove entirely a tumor through complete microscopic examination, leaving healthy tissue unharmed. It relies on the accuracy of a microscope to trace and ensure removal of skin cancer down to its roots.

Mohs requires a highly trained surgeon who is a specialist in both dermatology and pathology. Dr. Robert H. Zax of The Skin Group is one of the few doctors in the Louisville area qualified to perform Mohs surgery.

The Advantages of Mohs

• minimizes the chance of tumor re-growth

• lessens the potential for scarring or disfigurement

• preserves the maximum amount of normal skin

• repairs are often simple and involve fewer complicated reconstructive procedures

• does not require hospitalization

For more information about Mohs micrographic surgery, visit the American College of Mohs Micrographic Surgery and Cutaneous Oncology web site: http://www.mohscollege.org