WHY CHOOSE US?
Our primary focus at the Taylor Skin Cancer Center is the diagnosis and excision of skin cancers. Our goal is to provide patients with comprehensive services from diagnostic biopsy to removal with plastic surgery closures. We manage all forms of skin cancer, lesions suspicious for skin cancer, and benign skin lesions requiring surgical removal. Taylor Skin Cancer Center is dedicated to providing the highest level of skin surgery care.Â
We will strive to see you as soon as possible. At your appointment, we will take a small piece (biopsy) of your lesion and send it to the dermatopathologist, who will provide a definitive diagnosis. Once a diagnosis has been received we will create a plan for the treatment and removal of your lesion.Â
Biopsy scar
Most dermatologists perform what is called a “shave biopsy” where they shave off top layers of the lesion and surrounding skin. This destroys the architecture of the lesion, making future incisions more difficult with larger than necessary scars. In some cases, destroying the ability to accurately stage the lesion. While this can be a faster way of doing the biopsy, we feel it is not the best option for the patient.
A board certified plastic surgeon prefers not to burn, laser, or freeze your skin, in the removal process. We will perform a precise surgical excision with clear margins & precise plastic surgery repair to minimizing scar. We find this approach better for our patients and allows for a more comprehensive diagnosis of the type, and stage of the malignancy, while yielding a better scar.
Biopsy options at Taylor Skin Cancer Center:
- Punch biopsy: a procedure in which a small, round piece of tissue is removed using a sharp, hollow circular instrument. The tissue is then examined under the microscope for definitive diagnosis.
- Local excision: complete removal of the lesion using a scalpel. Edges of the biopsy site are then sutured together with a plastic surgery closure for minimal scarring.
- Excision with frozen sections: the lesion will be removed and provided to a dermatopathologist for evaluation. The dermatopathologist will freeze, cut, and dye the specimen before evaluating under a microscope to confirm all the cancer cells have been removed. If cancer is present after the initial surgical removal and evaluation, additional sections of skin will be removed for evaluation. Once the patient is confirmed cancer-free, the surgeon will then close the wound in a precise manner minimizing scar.
