Basal-cell carcinoma
Basal-cell cancer is a very common skin cancer. It is much more common in fair-skinned individuals with a family history of basal-cell cancer and increases in incidence closer to the equator or at higher altitude. There are approximately 800,000 new cases yearly in the United States alone. Up to 30% of Caucasians develop basal-cell carcinomas in their lifetime. In Canada, the most common skin cancer is basal-cell carcinoma (as much as one third of all cancer diagnoses), affecting 1 in 7 individuals over a lifetime.
Basal-cell carcinoma
A weakness with standard surgical excision is the high recurrence rate of basal-cell cancers of the face, especially around the eyelids, nose, and facial structures. There is no clear approach for treating basal-cell carcinoma around the eye. A diagram on page 38 of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network publication demonstrate the area of high risk of recurrence as being most of the face with the exception of the central cheek and upper forehead. On the face, or on recurrent basal-cell cancer after previous surgery, special surgical margin controlled processing (CCPDMA—complete circumferential peripheral and deep margin assessment) using frozen section histology (Mohs surgery is one of the methods) is required.