Superficial radiation advances as option for NMSC treatment
David J. Goldberg, MD, JD, examined the genesis of the evolution of superficial radiation therapy (SRT) during “New and Emerging Therapies for Non-Melanoma Skin Cancers,” part of “New Emerging Therapies” (S022). Dr. Goldberg is a dermatologic surgeon at Skin Laser and Surgery Specialists of New York/New Jersey.
NMSC is rising at a rate of 4-8 percent annually, with a five-year survival rate of 95 percent. The most common forms are basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma. Both have cure rates of 90 percent or higher when using simple surgical excision, radiotherapy, cryotherapy, electrodesiccation and curettage, and Mohs surgery.
“It is clear that Mohs does better than anything else in 2001 data,” Dr. Goldberg said, noting that its cure rates are 99 percent for BCC and 96.9 percent for SCC. “Mohs is my treatment of choice. We are still treating the majority of lesions with Mohs.”
