Twenty percent of Americans will develop skin cancer by the time they're 70, according to the Skin Cancer Foundation. Fortunately, your dermatologists at the Atlanta Center for Dermatologic Diseases in Cumming, Atlanta, Alpharetta, Roswell, and Sandy Springs, GA, offer skin cancer treatments that can help protect you should you ever develop the disease.

Skin cancer treatment options

Surgery used to be the only way to remove skin cancers. Today, a variety of innovative treatment options and surgical techniques treat skin cancers while minimizing scarring. Skin cancer treatments include:

• Medication: Medication may be all that's needed to remove skin cancer or precancerous spots in the outer layers of the skin. Medicated cream, lotion, or gel offer an effective way to kill cancerous cells that haven't reached the deeper layers of the skin.
• Cryotherapy: During cryotherapy, your Cumming, Atlanta, Alpharetta, Roswell, and Sandy Springs, GA,  doctor sprays liquid nitrogen on your skin. This freezes cancer cells, causing them to blister and fall off. Cryotherapy can be helpful in treating precancerous or cancerous growths.
• Curettage and Electrodessication: The treatment involves scraping off the skin cancer with a special instrument, then applying a gentle electrical current that kills any remaining cells and stops bleeding.
• Excision: Excision involves removing cancerous cells and a margin of healthy cells surrounding the area with a scalpel. Reconstructive surgery or skin grafts may be needed if the skin cancer is extensive or deep.
• Mohs Micrographic Surgery: During Mohs surgery, your dermatologist removes a single layer of your skin and examines it under a microscope. If he or she sees cancerous cells, additional layers will be removed one layer at a time until no cancerous cells remain. This surgical technique minimizes scarring, reduces the loss of healthy tissue, and offers a faster recovery time.
• Radiation Therapy: Radiation therapy may be combined with other therapies or used to treat large tumors or skin cancer in hard-to-reach areas. It may also be an option if you're not healthy enough to undergo surgery.

Are you concerned about a suspicious spot or a change in a mole? Your Cumming, Atlanta, Alpharetta, Roswell, and Sandy Springs, GA, dermatologists at the Atlanta Center for Dermatologic Diseases can diagnose your condition and offer skin cancer treatment options if needed. Schedule your appointment by calling (404) 252-4333 for the Sandy Springs office, (770) 751-1133 for the Roswell office, (404)-252-4333 for the Atlanta Office,(770) 664-5225 for the Alpharetta office, or (770) 844-1902 for the Cumming office.