What to expect on the day of surgery

Shortly after your arrival, you will be taken to one of the treatment rooms, where the tumor area will be numbed with anesthesia using a needle.

The doctor will remove a thin layer of skin surrounding the cancer. After this has been done, any bleeding will be stopped with an electric cautery machine. You will then be bandaged and be able to return to the waiting room or you may stay in the treatment room. By this time, the removed tissue will be in our laboratory. There, it is cut, dyed and made into microscopic slides. It usually takes 20-30 minutes for the layer of tissue to be removed and the bleeding to stop. However, it takes about 1 hour for the tissue to be prepared into microscopic slides for examination. During this time you may chat with the person accompanying you, read a book or step out for fresh air.  

If examination of the microscopic slides reveals that your tissue still contains tumor cells, the procedure will be repeated. Further tissue is removed only from the areas where tumor cells were found. 

The goal is to remove all of the skin cancer while preserving the greatest amount of healthy tissue. However, skin cancers can grow deeply and develop roots extending beyond the area that you actually see. As a result, the final size of the surgical incision will be determined by the extent of the tumor. The average number of surgical sessions required is one to three. However, you may require more before your skin cancer is completely removed. Fortunately, this can usually be done in the course of a single day. When surgery is completed, a decision will be made as to the way to manage your wound.