Mohs Surgery in Nashville, TN

Here is what you can expect from Mohs surgery in Nashville at Brentwood Dermatology: 

1. The Brentwood Dermatology nurse or medical assistant will greet you and take you into an exam room where your medical history and current medication list will be taken into account.
2. After the leading provider identifies the targeted area with a skin marker, the nurse or medical assistant will then numb the surgical site, as well as a small area around it, with a local anesthetic. This is to minimize pain and discomfort. 
3. After the site is numb, your doctor will go into the skin layer by layer to precisely target and remove cancerous cells and roots, preserving as much healthy skin as possible.
4. After each layer of skin is removed, the tissue is carefully mapped by the surgeon (i.e. Mohs surgery precise mapping technique) and it is taken to our in-office Mohs lab for further investigation. 
5. While the pathology lab is processing and evaluating the sampled tissue, a temporary bandage will be placed over the surgical site and you will wait in one of our comfortable rooms until the pathologists have confirmed that the entire cancer has been removed. 

This process—going into each layer of skin, removing the tissue, and evaluating the tissue in the lab—is repeated until the cancerous cells and roots are completely eliminated.

Mohs surgery can take anywhere from a couple hours to an entire day. This is because the surgery is not completed until all the cancerous cells and roots are removed, which can involve several rounds of going into each layer of skin, removing tissue, and evaluating the tissue in the lab. However, we find that most Mohs surgery patients are at our clinic for 3-4 hours. 

At Brentwood Dermatology, Mohs surgery is typically reserved for advanced skin cancers, such as those that are aggressive or show an invasive pattern microscopically. 

Furthermore, Mohs surgery may be recommended for skin cancers located on cosmetically sensitive areas, such as the scalp, neck, or ear. This is because Mohs surgery results in minimal scarring compared to other forms of skin cancer treatment.

Mohs surgery is very safe, especially when performed by an experienced Mohs surgeon, such as Dr. Kira Mayo, M.D., who is a Fellowship-trained Mohs surgeon near Nashville, TN, at Brentwood Dermatology. 

However, as with any skin cancer treatment, there are certain risks. The potential risks associated with Mohs surgery include bleeding, pain and discomfort, scarring, necrosis, infection, nerve damage, allergic reaction, and recurrence. 

While those risks may sound scary, rest assured that our board-certified dermatologists have extensive experience performing Mohs surgery to mitigate any risks and reduce unwanted side effects of the procedure.

Mohs surgery often leaves a scar the size of the incision site. Although, one of the major benefits of Mohs surgery is that this procedure aims to remove as little healthy skin as possible, which means a small incision and less scarring.

At Brentwood Dermatology near Nashville, TN, our Mohs surgery procedures are performed by Dr. Kira Mayo, M.D., who is a Fellowship-trained Mohs surgeon with specialized training and expertise in treating high-risk skin cancer. 

Additionally, two of our other providers — Dr. Joey Price, M.D., and Dr. Julie Countess, M.D. — perform Mohs micrographic surgery in Nashville as a skin cancer treatment. 

When undergoing Mohs surgery at Brentwood Dermatology, you can rest assured knowing you’re in good hands with one of our experienced Mohs surgeons!