One Doctor's Confession: Basal And Squamous Cell Skin Cancers Are NOT Benign

I have made a resolution for 2014: I will never, never, never again call basal and squamous skin cancers "benign" cancers. Why would I make such a strange commitment? The explanation is simple:  I spent 4 hours on New Year's Eve sitting in the surgeon's chair getting a skin cancer taken off my nose. Nothing about the experience fits the "benign" label so many professionals, including yours truly, have used:  routine; easy to treat; nothing to worry about.  Friends, after this experience, which left me looking like a tall, white-haired Rudolph the Reindeer, I am here to tell you these cancers are not to be trifled with, and are worth every effort you can make at preventing them by reducing exposure to UV radiation. This was the second time in the past 6 months that I had surgery for one of these "benign" cancers. The first time was difficult enough (see my earlier post), so when I saw a small growth that progressed over time, I made it a point to get to the dermatologist to get it removed. He did. That part was fairly simple. But a week later I got the call: "You need to see a Moh's surgeon. You have an aggressive basal cell carcinoma." Moh's surgery is a technique usually done by a dermatologist to treat skin cancers that may be in certain locations or particularly difficult to treat by more traditional surgery. During the procedure, the doctor takes out the area around the tumor, looks at it fairly quickly under the microscope, then determines whether or not ...
Source: Dr. Len's Cancer Blog - Category: Cancer Authors: Tags: Cancer Care Early detection Environment Exercise Other cancers Prevention Screening Treatment Source Type: blogs