Lesion Removal
From skin cancers to bothersome benign moles, our surgeons remove lesions and reconstruct the area in the same surgery whenever possible, with careful attention to how you look afterward.
Skin Lesion Removal in Duluth
Skin cancers are among the most common human malignancies, and they are one type of lesion we can remove, often while coordinating with your dermatologist. Aging, genetics, sun exposure, and other environmental factors all play a role in how these lesions develop.
Basal Cell Carcinoma (BCCA) is the most common, making up about 75 percent of skin cancers. Squamous Cell Carcinoma (SCCA) accounts for roughly 20 percent, and melanoma about 5 percent of skin malignancies.
No surgery is without scars, but we make every effort to treat your skin cancer without dramatically changing your appearance, using techniques from simple closures to complex reconstruction.
Benign or Cancerous
We remove lesions that are cancerous, precancerous, oversized, uncomfortable, or simply unwanted for personal reasons.
Same-Surgery Reconstruction
In most cases we can provide complete excision and reconstruction of the area during the same surgery.
Coordinated Referrals
We work alongside your dermatologist or primary care physician from biopsy through definitive treatment and repair.
Warning Signs Worth a Closer Look
Any non-healing ulcer or gradually enlarging skin lesion should be considered for excision. Talk with your provider if you notice:
- A sore or ulcer that will not heal
- A lesion that keeps growing or gradually enlarging
- Raised edges, crusting, or a pearly appearance
- Irregular borders or variable pigmentation
- Pain, bleeding, ulceration, or persistent itching
Basal Cell and Squamous Cell Carcinoma
These skin cancers are typically slow growing and curable with complete excision, though squamous cell carcinoma can be somewhat more aggressive and in some cases shows lymphatic invasion. Left untreated, both types can become locally invasive and disfiguring.
Suspicious lesions are first biopsied, incisionally or excisionally depending on size and location. Once diagnosed, treatment generally means complete excision, often with frozen-section evaluation of the margins. In some cases, several repeated stages are needed to obtain fully clear margins.
After removal, the defect is repaired. Often this is a straightforward skin closure, but when the defect is large or involves critical areas such as the nose, lips, or eyelids, a complex reconstructive procedure may be required.
Melanoma
Melanoma is an aggressive malignancy that often metastasizes and calls for a more involved treatment approach. Your plan depends on the depth of the lesion (Clark level and Breslow thickness), its size and location, and the clinical status of your lymph nodes.
Generally, a wide excision is indicated, with reconstruction of the resulting defect. Depending on the situation, sentinel node biopsy or radical node dissection may also be recommended.
Congenital Nevi
Some children are born with pigmented moles called congenital nevi. Small congenital nevi appear in about 1 in 100 births, while giant nevi are far rarer, about 1 in 20,000 births.
The goal of giant nevi removal is to eliminate the pigmented mole while minimizing scarring, which may take more than one surgery through staged excision. Not all moles are cancerous and most need no treatment, but if you would like one removed for personal reasons, we can discuss your options at consultation.
Why Patients Choose Lesion Removal
There are many reasons to have a skin lesion removed. It may be too big, bothersome, or uncomfortable. It may be cancerous or precancerous, often with a referral from a dermatologist or your primary care physician. Or you may simply dislike how it looks.
We use many techniques, some simple and some complex, to deliver an outcome that is both cosmetically pleasing and functional.
What to Expect
Suspicious lesions are biopsied first to confirm the diagnosis before definitive treatment.
Excision often includes frozen-section checks of the margins, sometimes over several stages, to confirm complete removal.
Repair ranges from a straightforward skin closure to complex reconstruction for large defects or sensitive areas.
In most cases, excision and reconstruction are completed during the same surgery.
“My experiences at Northland Plastic Surgery have been very positive. They have gone above and beyond to make sure I always receive the necessary treatments.”
Candy · Skin Lesion Removal Patient
Candy came to us with a large lesion on the top of her nose that proved to be basal cell carcinoma. She underwent excision with frozen-section biopsies of the margins, and complete removal of the tumor required taking a large portion of the nasal skin. Her reconstruction was a two-stage procedure, turning a flap of skin down from the forehead to resurface the nose.