The right skin cancer treatment can provide an effective way to care for your condition. Different doctors join minds in creating a care plan for specific types of cancers. A skin cancer care plan includes treatments for symptoms and side effects. If you want to know more about the skin cancer treatment options available, here is a quick guide.
Radiation therapy
This treatment uses high-energy particles to degrade skin cancer cells. This is an alternative to surgery if the area is difficult to reach. The doctor can perform radiation therapy on the tip of the nose, eyelid, or ear. The therapy is also good for avoiding surgical scarring. The doctor may also recommend radiation therapy after surgery. The goal is to prevent skin cancer from coming back.
HDR (high-dose radiation) brachytherapy is a skin cancer treatment involving the use of a radioactive seed. The doctor will use a plastic applicator to place the seed on the area of the skin cancer. This is a direct yet non-invasive way of delivering the radiation to the affected part of the skin. It lessens the radiation absorption of the surrounding healthy tissues. HDR brachytherapy lasts for about 10 minutes. The patient often needs 6 to 10 treatment sessions before the doctor checks the effectiveness of the skin cancer treatment.
Chemotherapy
This skin cancer treatment uses medications to prevent the development of cancer cells. This will happen either by stopping cell division or by killing the cells. Chemotherapy can address the skin cancer cells left after surgery or other treatments. Systemic chemotherapy is for squamous or basal cell carcinomas that have already spread to other parts of the body. Topical chemotherapy comes in cream form. This skin cancer treatment is for cancerous cells that are not in the skin yet.
Surgery
This skin cancer treatment removes the tumor and surrounding healthy tissue. Studies show that this treatment can remove any type of skin cancer with one procedure. In skin cancers, most surgeries are successful in removing the cancerous cells. The doctor will choose the type of surgery depending on the location, size, and type of skin cancer. Numbing the skin will keep the procedure painless. The doctor can perform the procedure in a hospital operating room or a clinic.
A simple excision is a type of surgery that cuts the tumor from the skin along with some normal tissue. Mohs surgery removes the tumor in layers. The layers of the tumor keep going until a healthy skin layer appears. Shave excision shaves off the abnormal skin area with a tiny blade. Electrodesiccation and curettage surgery uses a curette to cut out the skin tumor. Then, an electrode destroys the remaining cancer cells and stops the bleeding.
Laser surgery uses a laser beam as its scalpel. It results in bloodless cuts in removing cancerous cells. Cryosurgery uses a freezing instrument to destroy the abnormal tissue. In dermabrasion, the doctor removes the top skin layer with a rotating wheel to rub away the cancerous cells.
Photodynamic therapy
This is a skin cancer treatment for actinic keratoses. Applying aminoluvenic acid on the precancerous, scaly areas of the skin is the first stage of the treatment. The doctor will expose the area to a treatment light for several minutes to three hours. Taking pain medication before the photodynamic therapy can make the treatment less painful.
The skin will be sensitive while the aminoluvenic acid goes to work. Avoiding sun exposure after the treatment is ideal. Wearing protective clothing and sunglasses will protect the skin. Sunscreen can also help protect irritated skin.
Freezing
Cryotherapy uses liquid nitrogen to destroy cancer cells. It can treat precancerous skin ailments. The liquid nitrogen will sting upon first contact with the skin. The skin will then blister and then shed off. The patient will need at least one freezing session. In some cases, the procedure produces a scar.
Drug therapy
This is a systemic form of treatment using medication to destroy cancer cells. The doctor will give the medication through the patient’s bloodstream. This will reach the cancer cells all over the patient’s body. The doctor will prescribe the form of cancer medication the patient needs. This may come in the form of targeted pills or intravenous medication.
The doctor will choose which skin cancer treatment is right for you
Detecting and treating skin cancer is possible with the latest innovations in medicine. The doctor will perform a complete diagnosis. The doctor will then choose the right skin cancer treatment. An appointment with your doctor will start your journey toward better skin and general health.
Get more information about Lindenberg Cancer & Hematology Center in Marlton at https://lindenbergcancer.com.
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