Mohs Micrographic & Dermatologic Surgery
At CDMS Surgery Center, we provide nationally renowned expert care, focused around the surgical treatment of complex and high risk skin cancers, including tumor removal via Mohs micrographic technique, as well as facial plastic and reconstructive surgery after skin cancer removal.
Our surgeons are national thought-leaders in the field and maintain adjunct professor titles at several academic medical centers in the Pasadena and greater Los Angeles area.
In addition to skin cancer surgery, we routinely offer benign growth removal and scar revision, performed through our ambulatory surgery center.
How a Mohs procedure works
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1
The visible tumor is removed
Under local anesthesia, your surgeon removes a thin layer of tissue containing the visible cancer, along with a narrow margin around it.
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2
The margin is mapped and read on-site
The tissue is processed in our on-site lab and examined under a microscope immediately — not sent out to an external pathology lab. You wait comfortably on-site while this happens, typically 45–60 minutes.
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3
Additional layers are removed only where needed
If any cancer cells remain at a specific point on the margin, your surgeon removes another thin layer from precisely that location — not the whole area — and reads it again. This repeats until every margin is clear.
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4
The site is repaired the same day
Once you're clear, your Mohs surgeon closes the wound, or, for larger or more visible sites, a plastic surgeon in the same building performs the reconstruction — often that same afternoon.
Why Mohs instead of standard excision
Standard excision removes a fixed margin of tissue and sends it to an outside lab, with results in several days — if cancer is found at the edge, a second procedure is scheduled. Mohs surgery checks 100% of the margin before you leave, so the cure rate for appropriate tumors is significantly higher, and it's usually resolved in one visit.
Because only the affected tissue is removed, Mohs also spares more healthy skin than a standard excision with a fixed safety margin — which matters most on the face, ears, eyelids, nose, and hands, where preserving tissue and function is a priority.
Have a biopsy result in hand?
Bring your pathology report and referral, and we'll schedule your Mohs procedure.