Looking For An Orlando Dermatologist Specializing In Mohs Surgery?

The Most Effective Technique for Treating Common Skin Cancers is Mohs Surgery.

What is Mohs Surgery?

Mohs is considered the most effective technique for treating many basal cell carcinomas (BCCs) and squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs), the two most common types of skin cancer. Sometimes called Mohs micrographic surgery, the procedure is done in stages, including lab work, while the patient waits. This allows the removal of all cancerous cells for the highest cure rate while sparing healthy tissue and leaving the smallest possible scar.

The ability to see where the cancer stops gives Mohs (pronounced Moes) two important advantages:

1. Mohs has a high cure rate.
2. Mohs allows you to keep as much healthy skin as possible because the surgeon only removes the skin with cancer cells. This is especially important when skin cancer develops in an area with little tissue beneath (e.g., eyelid, ear, or hand).

The goal of Mohs is to remove as much of the skin cancer as possible, while doing minimal damage to surrounding healthy tissue. Mohs is usually done on an outpatient basis using a local anesthetic.

Who is trained to do Mohs Surgery?

If you’re looking for a local Orlando Dermatologist to perform the surgery, Dr. Vitaly Blatnoy should be your first choice.

Mohs surgery can be technically challenging. Many skin doctors (dermatologists) can perform Mohs surgery, since dermatologists learn about Mohs surgery in their medical training. Some Mohs surgeons have undergone specialized training — called a fellowship — to learn more about the procedure and become more proficient in Mohs surgery. Dr. Blatnoy is certified by the American Board of Dermatology and the American Society of Mohs Surgery. 

Mohs surgery is especially useful for skin cancers that:

• Have a high risk of recurrence or that have recurred after previous treatment
• Are located in areas where you want to preserve as much healthy tissue as possible, such as around the eyes, ears, nose, mouth, hands, feet and genitals
• Have borders that are hard to define
• Are large or aggressive

What you can expect

The surgery is done on an outpatient basis in an operating room or procedure room that has a nearby laboratory that allows the surgeon to examine the tissue after it’s removed.

In most cases, the procedure lasts a few hours. But since it can be difficult to tell how extensive a skin tumor is just by looking at its surface, doctors often advise reserving the whole day for the procedure.