Are you having MOHs surgery? I've had that for basal cell, and it's a bit of a procedure but assures that all the bad cells are removed. You seem upset, but it's good it was caught. Ask for help to keep the scar to a minimum.

What is MOHs surgery?

I had MOHs surgery as well for basal cell on my nose. I now have a full body check-up every year by a dermatologist.

For me, I arrived at the Doctors office at 7:30 am with a few other patients who all had basal cell on their faces. The doctor then cuts out some of the mark and tests the edge of the cells in the lab immediately. If the edges are not all clean they will then remove a little bit more and then test again. They will continue this until the edges are clear of cancer cells. Because it's on the face they want to remove as little as possible.

This type of careful surgery is usually done just on the face. It is slow, delicate work and can take all day. It's only done on the face in order to preserve as much of the face as possible. While the success rate is extremely high the incidence of basal cell recurrence on the face is a very real possibility.

My surgeon was also a plastic surgeon, although that may be normal, and so did the plastic surgery to fix the hole left in my nose right away. Unfortunately he wouldn't do my eyes at the same time!

There is nothing to worry about although the word cancer is such a scary word. It won't spread except in extremely rare cases but neither do you want to leave it because that could cause disfigurement..

I was 59 when I had mine done - 2 years ago and everything is good. I stay out of the sun, wear SPF 50, wear sunglasses (good ones) and a hat.

Here is a link that might be useful: MOHs surgery

I have had skin cancer in three places on my face. One Squamous Cell on my forehead, and two Basal Cell -- one on the side of my nose, and the other near the inside corner of my right eye. That one was so close to the tear duct that my dermatologist (who is consistently named one of the two Top Docs in dermatology) sent me to a Mohs specialist.

If you know where to look, and look closely, you can see an itty bitty scar on my forehead and an itty bitty scar on the side of my nose. But you cannot tell at all where the Mohs surgery was done near my eye.

A very basic explanation of the difference between "regular" surgery and Mohs surgery is that with the regular surgery, the doctor will remove a chunk of skin surrounding the area where the mole (or "bump") was removed. Then the tissue will be sent to a lab for analysis. If an edge of that chunk has any cancerous cells, you have to go back again to have another chunk removed. And, they won't know exactly where on the original chunk the cancer cells were, so an even larger area will be excised to try to make sure they got it all.

With Mohs surgery, a very thin section of skin is removed. That section is then cut into quarters, and each quarter is given a different color. Those quarters are examined, and if any of them have cancerous cells, the doctor will remove another thin layer, but only from the section(s) that still are affected. They know exactly which areas to go back to because of how the sections are coded.

Yes, it can take all day, but that's because once a sample is excised, you go back out to the waiting room while the tissue is prepared and examined. The "waiting part" takes about an hour or so. If they need to go back for more, you are taken back to the procedure room again, and then back out to the waiting room. As soon as you get an "all clear," you can leave.

And the waiting room where I had my Mohs surgery had extremely comfortable recliners to rest (nap) in. And this was years before I had a Kindle, so I brought some knitting with me.

I, too, go for a fully body skin check each year. Thankfully, nothing further has been found.

The earlier it is detected, the better. I had it 2 different times, and they had to dig a deep hole to get it all. Took less than 15 minutes to check the tissue and be sure. Covered it with Vaseline & a bandage for about 6 weeks, no air or water, it starts healing from the inside out. Follow ups had no problems. Go back next month to be checked again. Was surprised how many others hanging out down at the beach have had it. No need to hide, just be more vigilant in what you may see/suspect.

littlebug5 - do you have an appointment with your dermatologist before the surgery to discuss the procedure and what to expect? If not, I would encourage you to call and discuss it with the physician, especially since this is on your face.

Last Oct. I saw the dermatologist about a warty-looking thing on my chest. That turned out to be nothing but she DID find something on the bridge of my nose that I hadn't even been aware of.....eyesight isn't what it used to be, ha ha. That "something" turned out to be a basal cell carcinoma. Dr. told me that if I had to have skin cancer, basal cell was the best one of the three to have. Removal was a piece of cake, although the numbing shot was a bit unpleasant. Got it all on the first try, luckily. Now I am vigilent about wearing sunscreen, hats and sunglasses where before I was nonchalant, i.e. it couldn't happen to me!

You're going to see many Seniors at the dermatologist. If you live long enough, sun damage will show up. The good part is that we now know to avoid too much sun and to look for damage while it can be treated.

I'm so glad I always ignored my mother's plea to get my nose out of a book and go out and get some sun.

DH lettered in swimming and was on his HS tennis team. He's had several 'procedures', and we both see a dermatologist regularly. I seldom have anything, but last visit he had about thirty places 'zapped' with the liquid nitrogen. He's finally agreed to wear a big brimmed sun hat this summer. We are both very fair skinned and have blue eyes.

A friend was a lifeguard on Lake Michigan beaches for years. He's had many skin cancers treated, but you'd have to look very carefully to see any scars. He just has to be 'seen' more often to catch things in the early stages.

Thanks. Yes I know this is minor cancer. But still worrisome. And probably painful. I have seen others with what look to be large incisions and stitches on their necks and faces.

Thanks again.

You will not (or at least shouldn't) have a large incision, and you will have little to no pain. The people you see with large incisions and lots of stitches are people who didn't get it taken care of timely so the cancer progressed. Yours was caught early.

I was a fair skinned red head as a child. No longer a redhead but gray now. I had many bad sun burns as we vacationed in Florida and it was in the days when you used very little lotions on your skin. The forties and fifties. I can remember laying in the bed in so much pain from the sunburns. Used Noxzema to help with the pain. Now in my 70's I have had many precancerous spots taken off my arms and face. As many spots have been sent off to be checked to make sure it was not cancerous I have been very lucky that so far none were cancerous. I keep my appointment every 6 months with the dermatologist. I hope your surgery goes well. Mine was so minor and done in the office. Lots of scraping and cutting and it takes a long time to heal. But it does. I now use lots of lotion when I am out in the sun.
Mary