Treatment for skin cancer will vary, depending on the size, type, depth, location of the lesions and the patient’s preferences and overall health. If skin cancer is limited to the surface of the skin, it will not require any treatment beyond an initial skin biopsy that removes the entire growth of cancer.
In treating skin cancer different types of doctors often work together to create a patient’s overall treatment plan that combines different types of treatments. Professionals offer detection and treatment of skin cancer. Professional skin doctors need to be highly trained and all the results are processed in special pathology laboratories.
Some of the most common treatment options for skin cancer are listed below:
Table of Contents
Surgery
Most of the skin cancers can be removed from the skin quickly and easily during a simple surgical procedure. It can be done easily by a dermatologist, surgical oncologist, general surgeon or plastic surgeon.
Mohs surgery: This treatment of surgery involves removing the visible tumour and also small fragments around the edge of the area where the tumour was located. This type of surgery is used for larger tumours, located in the head-and-neck region, and for cancers that have come back in the same place.
Other than this there are other surgeries like Curettage and electrodesiccation- treated with an electric current, Wide excision – done with skin grafting, Reconstructive surgery – done with the help of a plastic surgeon or facial specialist performed on facial skin.
Radiation therapy
In Radiation therapy, high energy rays are used to destroy cancer cells. It is done by a radiation oncologist specialist. This therapy is used in the circumstance where skin cancer is located in a hard-to-treat place, such as on the eyelid, the tip of the nose, or the ear. Sometimes it may also be recommended by doctors after surgery to help prevent the skin cancer from coming back. A radiation therapy regimen usually consists of a specific number of treatments given over a set period of time.
Topical treatments
Treating precancerous skin conditions or a cancerous lesion located only in the top layer of the skin, specialists such as SunDoctors can be the better guide in prescribing topical treatments which include chemotherapy as a cream or lotion or laser therapy.
In Chemotherapy special drugs are used to destroy skin cancer cells, which is applied to the affected skin every day for several weeks. These creams can cause irritation, burning, redness, and stinging during treatment and subsides after the completion of treatment. Basically, it should be applied 2 times a day for 3 to 6 weeks. The medications used to treat cancer are continually being evaluated by our team of doctors and closely observe the potential side effects or interactions with other medications.
Photodynamic therapy
In Photodynamic therapy a topical medication called aminolaevulinic acid is applied over areas of skin cancer and is exposed to a special light-emitting device for several minutes to a few hours. It makes the skin very sensitive, so it is important to avoid sun exposure and wear protective glasses, wear full clothing, and apply sunscreen for a few days after the procedure.
Freezing
Freezing procedure uses liquid nitrogen to freeze and destroy abnormal cells in treating precancerous skin conditions. It will sting when it is first applied to the skin, and then the skin will blister and shed off. This procedure leaves a pale scar-like done during laser therapy in which a high-intensity light is used to destroy precancerous skin condition instead of liquid nitrogen.
Targeted therapy
Targeted therapy is a treatment that targets cancer’s specific genes, proteins, or the tissue environment that contributes to cancer growth. Immunotherapy uses materials made either by the body or in a laboratory to improve, target, or restore immune system function. This treatment is benefitted for metastatic or locally advanced squamous cell carcinoma.
Before going for any treatment, choose specialists to know about the goals of each treatment and what you can expect while receiving treatment. With using the state-of-the-art technology and enabling the highest standards of medical care, the best clinics can render results to patients at every point in their treatment journey.