Can You Tell if Your Bcc is Moving into Your Bone?

Question

I have a very small sore on my cheek that I kept picking at and never let it heal.If I had to guess I would say it has been there for about 2 years and I have been digging a slight hole little by little. I just had it biopstyed and now the sore is worse off than when i started. now it's ozzing clear stuff and they want to remove it. I was fine with it, now it's worse and I'm thinking it's only going to really be a mess. Can you tell if this is travling into your bone or eye as some say it can? .

Sonia Badreshia-Bansal, MD · Answer

Thank you for your question. Basal cell carcinoma is typically a very slow growing cancer of the skin that almost never metastasizes (spreads through the blood stream to other body organs), except in very rare instances where the skin cancer itself is very large and has been left unattended often for several years. It is recommended to have the cancer of the skin treated, and to follow up with your Board Certified Dermatologist for regularly scheduled skin exams as well, as there are citations that 50% of patients who have been diagnosed with a BCC may have another develop within a three year period after the diagnosis of an initial lesion.  Therefore, close follow up is recommended. I hope this helps.

Steven Hacker, MD · Answer

Any non healing sore on the skin should be evaluated and probably biopsied by a board certified dermatologist. Basal call cancers, though possible, uncommonly invade the bone so though it is conceivable it is relatively less common.

Steven Swengel, MD · Answer

First rule in Derm: Don't start worry about a cancer until you have confirmed you have one. The larger hole that is now there after a biopsy is due to the tissue being taken to confirm a diagnosis. Keep it clean, moist with a bit of Aquaphor and keep it covered for at least a week before you start leaving it open to the air. If it is a skin cancer, it is curable and because of location would best be treated with a procedure called Mohs Surgery. Be sure to request a consultation for that procedure if it turns out to be one.

F. Victor Rueckl, MD (in memoriam) · Answer

Many times BCCs have what are called "roots", where the cancer travels under the skin in branches, rather than on the surface. There is no real way to tell if your BCC has this underneath. I'm unclear from your question if you are assuming you have a BCC, or if it came back from the lab as a proven BCC. If it is a BCC, it needs to be removed. It's not something to mess around with and you absolutely don't want to ignore it, as yes, it can spread and become bigger over time.

Can You Tell if Your Bcc is Moving into Your Bone?

Answers (4)

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