Appointment with Mohs Surgeon

[eytonxav]

At my recent skin cancer checkup the dermatologist biopsied a small area around my left eyebrow and it turned out to be a basal cell carcinoma. I have a consult next Tuesday with the surgeon and surgery is schedule later in August. In general I am not very worried about this type of surgery until I saw a video by a lady that had one and the same general location as mine. She said the day after her surgery she felt like she got hit with wooden baseball bat, and the day after that it was even worse feeling like being hit with a metal baseball bat. I am pretty good in dealing with pain, but her experience got my attention. Anyone else had to deal with these in the eyebrow area? I am wondering if her situation was an anomaly or that is common. Also, wondering if I will be able to drive myself home, but I am thinking probably not.

 

[pacergal]

I have not, but my DF had a few, one was right on the corner of his eye, which ended up being larger than the doc thought, but good to get all the bad cells. He had one on the top of his head and one on his arm.
The eye one was most bothersome, I do not recall he took anything other than extra Tylenol. That one in particular, did take a while to heal, looked fine after. I believe he drove himself, but the dr was very nearby their home.

Best wishes for quick healing.

 

[5Miler]

I have not had MOHS procedures on my eyebrow but about 2.5 years ago, I had two procedures on my nose with one including the additional pleasure of a skin graft. I was fortunate on both procedures to have all the Basal Cell removed on the first pass while others have had to endure multiple passes which I would guess involves more wound management issues.

That said, on the first procedure with the skin graft, I was uncertain so had DGF drop me off and pick me up which proved to be not required. For the second, I drove myself and it wasn't much of an issue. On that one they removed the cancer from the tip of my nose and did surgical magic to make a larger incision to cover it without need of a graft. The graft was the worst part as the donor location was from the inside of my ear. Ouch!

Most of the other patients I talked to in the waiting area (before the procedure and while waiting for results) drove themselves and many were frequent flyers with multiple procedures under their belt. I think everyone has their own level of tolerance for these procedures and a lot will depend upon the depth and size of the surgical area. As I said, both of mine were one and done so I consider myself lucky in that regard. I don't recall really experiencing any pain other than getting that freaking needle in the tip of my nose to start the festivities but that was short lived.

 

[misanman]

I had MOHS on the side of my face. I don't remember anything out of the ordinary as far as pain was concerned but the bandage was huge. The surgeon only had to make one pass and it healed up to be nearly invisible.

 

[lrip]

Had this done on my back a few years ago. Not terribly painful. Drove to and from with no issues. It did take awhile to complete the procedure, since they cut and check before stitching you up.

 

[user5027]

I recently had mohs surgery on the small peninsular shaped skin in front of my left ear canal for Squamous Cell Carcinoma. They got it all with one pass after using lidocaine. Couldn't feel a thing but with the location I could hear every slice of the scalpel and every suture. I drove home with no issues and needed nothing for pain. Four of us went that day and they had us in a separate waiting room with our huge bandages while they ran the pathology to make sure they got it all. I commented that we all looked like we were in a fight and mine was with Mike Tyson.

 

[bmcgonig]

Ive had quite a few Mohs, nose, ear, forehead twice, but never felt that kind of pain. Sometimes people leave these for a long time before getting seen. They look tiny on top but can be very large underneath. Possibly the woman had one of those where they didn’t find it until late. Just a guess. Doesn’t look like you’re in that situation. I always drove myself home.

 

[Texas Proud]

I just want to know how YOU know that there is a difference in feeling from a wooden baseball bat compared to a metal one

 

[latexman]

I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve had Mohs surgery. Over a dozen. Most times from the shoulders up. About 2-3 times in or around my eye brows. In fact, my last Mohs surgery was at the right end of my right eyebrow.

First, people have a wide tolerance for pain. Some handle it well and some not at all.

But, I call BS on this lady. Yes, she may have had bruising that did not look so good, maybe she’s vain, but I have never felt much pain during or after Mohs surgery.

No worries, DFW_M5.

 

[Luvtoride]

I’ve had Mohs surgery on my scalp and temple for squamous cell carcinoma in the past year. No issues or unusual pain either time and got it all with one pass. The surgical center advised me to have someone drive me home.

I worked in downtown NYC for many years before and after the World Trade Center attacks. I’ve had these cancers (along with my asthma) certified as being attributable to being in the area after 9/11. I have health care for life through the WTC Health Program for these conditions. Skin cancers were the most commonly caused cancers attributable to being in the 9/11 exposure zone.

 

[sturbridge]

I am a baby when it comes to pain, the mohs surgery was just not that big of a deal. The thing that annoyed me was that the spot was too small for them to see, there was a delay due to communication with my doctor, yet i wound up with an inch long plus scar, and my right eyebrow is at least 1/2 higher than the left (and i was already
asymmetrical)

 

[eytonxav]

I am a baby when it comes to pain, the mohs surgery was just not that big of a deal. The thing that annoyed me was that the spot was too small for them to see, there was a delay due to communication with my doctor, yet i wound up with an inch long plus scar, and my right eyebrow is at least 1/2 higher than the left (and i was already
asymmetrical)

I am not worried about asymmetrical eyebrow, but concerned it could distort my vision by affecting the muscles around the eye socket.

 

[Mark1]

DW had MOHS surgery on her forehead and it did impact her ability to drive the next night, but no big deal. The issue was mostly due to all the solution they injected into her during the procedure. It's probably not a bad idea to be driven to the appointment, but I would worry about lady in the videos experience.

 

[jcretire77]

Basal cell removal in middle of forehead looked like I had been hit by the baseball bat, but did not hurt that I can recall.

Sorry for the slight tangent, but do you all try to see the dermatologist every year? I do after having two basal cell removals on forehead and scalp several years ago. I have to go back Wednesday to have a precancerous spot frozen after the biopsy. That one plus three others were frozen.

 

[5Miler]

I utilize the VA for most of my medical. Since my procedures they have me come in every year for a checkup. Just did an exam in April with nothing raising any suspicions. 6 days earlier I had just returned from my 5 week scuba vacation where I spent a large part of every day outdoors at the pool or on a dive boat.

They just cautioned me to use sun screen and wear a hat when possible. I've lost my share of hats blown off of dive boats so have given up on donating them to the ocean.

 

[Amethyst]

My late husband had basal cell carcinoma removed via Mohs on his forehead and the back of his hand. The surgeon, who was extremely skilled (he hid the forehead scar in the natural wrinkles, and the hand scar was barely visible after healing) invited me to look on for a few minutes - it was a sight I'll not soon forget, but it all turned out well.

Mr. A. had no post-surgery issues at all, and was pleased with how everything turned out. My advice would be to get a surgeon with plastic surgery credentials.

 

[38Chevy454]

I've had a squamous cell spot removed from each cheek area, two separate MOHS procedures. No more pain than any similar stitches. As mentioned the worse part is the large bandage they cover it with. Once you can get down to a smaller bandage or bandaid it is much better. I agree that nothing to worry about the MOHS and the recovery.

 

[5Miler]

I've had a squamous cell spot removed from each cheek area, two separate MOHS procedures. No more pain than any similar stitches. As mentioned the worse part is the large bandage they cover it with. Once you can get down to a smaller bandage or bandaid it is much better. I agree that nothing to worry about the MOHS and the recovery.

Kind of a mixed blessing when they did the two surgeries on my nose. Both were in December 2020 and face masks were the fashion hit at the time.

 

[38Chevy454]

Kind of a mixed blessing when they did the two surgeries on my nose. Both were in December 2020 and face masks were the fashion hit at the time.

Maybe I wasn't as clear in writing as I was thinking. My MOHS surgeries were several years apart. Not at the same time.

 

[stargazer08]

My 88 year old step father just completed superficial radiation for 3 spots of skin cancer on his face. It's 21 treatments 3X a week for 7 weeks. You might check into this instead of MOHS.
He had MOHS on his neck several years ago and it was fairly tramatic for him. Being an all day procedure, it just wiped him out. It was a pain to go through the superficial radiation because the office was an hour away but we got it done.
He has mobility and memory issues.

 

[eytonxav]

Thanks everyone for the input. Had my pre-MOHS consult with the surgeon the other day. Dr said I should be able to drive myself home which was good news to me. DW is incapacitated driving wise due to cataracts. She is still waiting for her initial consult for that procedure. It seems a lot of these surgeries are not easy to book in a timely manner.

 

[user5027]

Thanks everyone for the input. Had my pre-MOHS consult with the surgeon the other day. Dr said I should be able to drive myself home which was good news to me. DW is incapacitated driving wise due to cataracts. She is still waiting for her initial consult for that procedure. It seems a lot of these surgeries are not easy to book in a timely manner.

What did they say about your concern for distorting your vision by affecting the muscles around the eye socket?

 

[latexman]

I had a full body scan yesterday. 4 biopsies and 6 liquid nitrogen sprays. In about a week I get the results of the 4 biopsies. I’ll be surprised if no surgery, Mohs or otherwise, is needed

 

[camfused]

I've had about 10 Mohs done. I never had any side effects, other than needing some Tylenol afterwards. I think I could have driven myself home, but always had DW with me.

 

[Rummy]

I'm a frequent flyer at my Dermatologist. Squamous cell carcinoma is my curse. I've had 22 surgeries (so far), only one was a MOHS procedure. That one was my first procedure because I ignored the spot far too long.

I see the Dermatologist on a three to six month schedule, depending on what he finds. If I'm clear for a time he'll see me every 6 months. I'm also very familiar now with what a lesion looks and feels like and call for an appointment and biopsy as soon as I notice one.

Pain is not a problem for me. I may take a Tylenol after the initial numbing wears off the first day. I had a driver for the first MOHS surgery because I didn't know what to expect. All other surgeries I was able to drive myself.

Interestingly, I asked the Dr if I'm in his "top ten".. He said I'm close but not yet. He said transplant patients seem to have many, and are high up on his list.

Wear sunscreen, a hat, and long sleeve sun shirts and pants!