Mohs Micrographic Surgery FAQ

Skin cancers are like trees with large and complex roots that never stop growing. While it may appear that your skin cancer is small or gone, it is still growing under your skin.  It will reappear in weeks or years and require a much larger and more complex surgery, leaving you with a larger and possibly disfiguring scar.

Skin cancer can also invade into other nearby parts of your body such as your bone or your eye. Basal skin cancer grows slowly over years but squamaous cell cancer moves fast and can invade other tissues over weeks.

Mohs surgery for skin cancer is the only highly specialized surgery that can provide a cure for skin cancer if done early enough, before the cancer has spread. If you choose to wait, cancel or postpone your surgery, you do so against the medical advice of your doctors and are taking the risk of dying from your cancer and its spread.

Because Mohs surgery is so in demand cancellations happen rarely. However, they do occur in the instances when there is a medical emergency for the patient undergoing surgery. You can put your name on our cancellation list if you are available to come in for your skin cancer surgery with less than 24hours notice.

Yes, it is absolutely necessary to have someone drive you home. You will be undergoing a major surgery under local anesthesia. You will have bandages on your face that may impair your vision. You will be feeling tired. Surgery is stressful on the body and you can not drive home.

We highly recommended that you have someone accompany you home.

If you are a Canadian resident of a province other than Quebec and have paid your MSP premiums, you are eligible to have your Mohs surgery for skin cancer covered by MSP.

No, do not stop any medications prescribed to you by other physicians.

Nicotine in any form (cigarette, e-cigarette, gum, patch) slows healing. We recommend stopping or cutting down for as long as possible before or after your skin cancer surgery to help you with your healing process and minimize your scar.

Every individual and surgery is unique. There is no way to know what your scar will look like. Mohs surgery is the gold standard for skin cancer treatment and allows the smallest scar possible. It is for this reason that family physicians, dermatologists and plastic surgeons refer to super specialized Mohs surgeons such as Dr. Eiman Nasseri for excision and removal of all basal cell skin cancers and squamous cell skin cancer. It is not possible to cut the skin and not leave a scar, but our speciality at Healthy Skin Centre is to cure you of your skin cancer and leave you with the smallest scar possible.

All surgeries leave scars and all scars are permanent. However, scars continue to improve over two years and may improve to the point where the scar is no longer noticeable. One of our specialized nurses and one of our skin cancer consultants will discuss options to help your scar heal. Each person is unique and we can recommend what can help your skin specifically. The most important thing to remember is that after your surgery you will be cancer free.

One of our skin care consultants will meet with you during your surgery day to review your post surgery wound care plan. We will show you how to change your dressing daily until your stitches are removed. We will also recommend a daily anti-oxidant serum as well as physical sunblock to prevent future skin cancers.

Our specialized skin care consultants can answer any questions you have regarding skin care post skin cancer diagnosis and which an anti-oxidant serums or creams are specifically suited to your skin for skin cancer prevention. Our skin care consultants are available to you before, during and after your surgery to answer any skin care questions you may have.

One of the benefits of Mohs surgery is that it is all done under local anesthesia without any of the risks of general anesthesia.

Your referring physician (family physician, dermatologist or plastic surgeon) has already determined you need Mohs surgery and sent us all the information we need. Dr. Eiman Nasseri will review the letter and pictures from your referring physician. You will then receive a call by one of our surgical team members to fill out your Patient Health Questionnaire which will provide us with your past medical history. Dr. Eiman Nasseri will review your answers and determine if you need to be seen in consultation on a day before your surgery date. Otherwise, all patients receive a full consultation on the day of surgery.

If you have been diagnosed with skin cancer, it means you have had significant sun damage and are at high risk for more skin cancers in the future.  Photodynamic therapy, also known as PDT, is available at Healthy Skin Centre to treat sun damaged skin and to stop pre-cancerous cells in their tracks.

PDT destroys pre-cancerous cells and prevents skin cancer.  Treatment with PDT after skin cancer surgery decreases the likelihood of requiring future skin cancer surgeries and the scars that go with them.

Although PDT is not covered by MSP in British Columbia, it is covered by most extended health plans and we can help you maximize your benefits coverage. You can discuss if photodynamic therapy is right for you with Dr. Eiman Nasseri who is a PDT expert during your appointment at our  surgical centre or you can call us ahead of time to get some information if you already know you would like to go ahead an book a PDT treatment for prevention. You can also, click here, for more information about Photodynamic Therapy for skin cancer prevention.

If you are travelling by ferry from to see us for surgery, you can make a request for travel assistance. This will give you a free ride on the ferry. Your referring physician can provide you with a ferry assistance form if you require it.

We recommend waiting at least one week before air travel or until your stitches are out.

Yes, there are several nearby hotels. Please call them directly for availability and rates. Mention you are having surgery at Healthy Skin Centre as some hotel offer a discounted rate to our patients.

Click on the hotels below for their contact and reservation information.

1. Inn at the Quay
2. The Met Hotel
3. The Executive Plaza Hotel Metro Vancouver