Santa Monica Mohs Surgery doctors

	Ben Behnam, MD Santa Monica Dermatologic Surgeon 2825 Santa Monica Blvd Suite 303A, Santa Monica		2 answers
	Tanya Kormeili, MD Los Angeles Dermatologist 1260 Fifteeth Street Suite 709, Santa Monica
	Ava Shamban, MD Santa Monica Dermatologic Surgeon 2021 Santa Monica Blvd. Suite 600E, Santa Monica
	Elisabeth Shim, MD Santa Monica Dermatologist 1301 20th Street Suite 570 , Santa Monica
	Paul Yamauchi, MD, PhD Santa Monica Dermatologist 2001 Santa Monica Blvd #49SW, Santa Monica

Recent Answers

Numbness and Scarring After Mohs Surgery I am a 48 yr old woman who had Mohs Sx 2 weeks ago. The incision begins at the top of the nose beside the left eye and goes down the left side of the nose and across the tip of the nose. A large portion of my nose is numb and the scarring is not pretty. Am I jumping the gun, or will my results get better? I am not ready to wear this nose even at my age. Thank you

A: Lack of sensation after Mohs surgery

It is very common to cut superficial sensory nerves after Mohs surgery. In most cases, they do come back, but may take time, even as long as 6 to 8 months. With respect to the scar, be patient, It has only been two weeks. It Will get better. I would wait 6 to 8 months before doing anything with the scar. Dr. Behnam.

Ben Behnam, MD

Santa Monica Dermatologic Surgeon

BCC on Side of Nose - Mohs or Laser Removal? I have a BCC in the left side of the base of my nose.I m 33yo, my mother just removed the same BCC on the same place, with Mohs surgery. Results are great and healing process fast. After my research, I am facing a dilemma. Should I do Mohs or a laser removal (2mm around the BCC)? Is it possible with Mohs to transfer cancerous cells through the blood stream to other parts of the body or in the blood circulation?

A: BCC and Mohs

There are many different ways of treating a BCC, depending on the type. If it is very small and superficial BCC then Aldara might be a great option, giving the fact that you understand that the cure rate is not 100% and recurrence may occur. Mohs is the gold standard but will leave a scar. It has the highest cure rate of 98 percent. Mohs, if performed correctly, will not spread the cells through the blood stream. In fact, the point of Mohs is to make sure that you get the entire skin cancer so that none is remaining in the body, decreasing the risk if local and distant metastasis. Also, BCC for the most part is a localized skin cancer and rarely does it metastasize. Other options do include using a CO2 laser for the BCC, however this might leave a worst scar than all the treatments above. So, I would first figure out if its superficial BCC or nodular BCC, and then talk about the options, cure rates, potential of scarring with your dermatologist. Hope this helps. Dr Behnam.

Ben Behnam, MD

Santa Monica Dermatologic Surgeon