MOHS Surgery in Houston, TX

Learning you have skin cancer can be a scary experience and deciding your treatment plan means learning about all of the options. Of all the surgical techniques available today, MOHs surgery offers the lowest recurrence rate of malignant lesions and maximum preservation of healthy tissue. It is only performed by specialized dermatological surgeons. However, after the malignant lesion is removed, a depression or hole in the skin often remains. Since obvious scars on the face can be disfiguring and make you feel less confident, which is where double board-certified facial plastic and reconstructive surgeon Dr. Eugene "Gene" Alford offers reconstructive surgery after MOHs surgery. Dr. Gene specializes in carefully reconstructing the facial tissue in his patients at Alford Facial Plastic Surgery in Houston, TX restoring the skin’s natural appearance. This is especially important in such high profile areas as the nose, lips, eyelids, and other areas of the head and neck that draw a lot of attention, and help you make a great first impression.

It takes about 2 – 4 hours to surgically remove the skin cancer with MOHS surgery which is done by a dermatologist. The patient then sees Dr. Gene to provide a reconstructive operation for patients who have lost a significant amount of their tissue to cancer.   

Following your reconstructive surgery Dr. Gene will have you stay overnight in the hospital so your recovery can be carefully monitored. Dr. Gene will come see you in the hospital the next day to determine if you are able to continue your recovery at home. Depending on the approach for reconstruction most patients take about 1 – 4 weeks for recovery before returning to their normal activities and work.

Because MOHS surgery by itself has a 99% cure rate vs. traditional excision, whose cure rate can be as low as 70%, the accuracy of the reconstruction is enhanced by a lower chance of reoccurrence. This high cure rate allows for immediate reconstruction without the delay of waiting for traditional pathology results.

Since each case is unique, there is no average cost for MOHS reconstruction surgery, but Dr. Gene will go over expense estimates during your initial consultation. MOHS reconstruction surgery is usually covered at least in part by health insurance, so our office will communicate with your insurance company to determine your benefits and coverage.

• Aggressive skin cancer
• Basal cell carcinoma
• Larger cancers
• Melanoma
• Merkel cell carcinoma
• Nonmelanoma skin cancer
• Skin cancer on the head or neck
• Skin cancer with undefined borders
• Squamous cell carcinoma

MOHS reconstruction surgery is best for patients who have areas of skin cancer on their face and neck that need to be removed while leaving as much healthy skin and tissue as possible. Skin reconstruction after the cancer excision should also be performed by a skilled facial plastic surgeon like Dr. Gene to give you the best, most natural results.

Since the goal of MOHS reconstruction surgery is to fully remove unhealthy tissue and restore your appearance, Dr. Gene makes every effort to place surgical incisions in easily concealed areas of the face and neck. Since the head is a highly visible area, it is important to follow all of Dr. Gene’s instructions and recommendations on scar care management to ensure smooth, flat scars that blend into the normal skin.