Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Squamous cell carcinoma is a type of skin cancer, often related to sun damage, that affects the upper and middle layers of your skin. Expert dermatologists at Advanced Laser and Skin Cancer Center in Teaneck, New Jersey, provide advanced and personalized treatment for squamous cell carcinoma, including Mohs surgery. To learn more about squamous cell carcinoma and its treatments, book an appointment over the phone or online today.

What is squamous cell carcinoma?

Squamous cell carcinoma is a form of skin cancer that can come from ultraviolet (UV) light damage to your skin cells. It’s the most common type of skin cancer in people with darker skin tones. If you have darker skin, you might get squamous cell carcinoma in a non sun-exposed area. However, fair-skinned individuals tend to get it on sun-exposed parts of their skin. 

Squamous cell carcinoma starts in your epidermis’s squamous cells, which are flat, elongated cells on your skin’s surface that constantly shed as your skin produces new cells to replace them. If you don’t catch this type of skin cancer early on in its formation, it has the potential to spread to other parts of your body where the cancer can do more harm. 

What does squamous cell carcinoma look like?

Advanced Laser and Skin Cancer Center encourages you to look over your skin regularly for anything that looks unusual. They also provide regular skin screenings for people at a higher risk of getting skin cancer.

Squamous cell carcinoma has many possible features and appearances, including:

• Red nodules
• Flat, scaly sores
• A rough patch or open sore on your lip
• A new sore in an old scar or ulcer
• A wart-like lesion

If your dermatologist finds a suspicious lesion, they might take a biopsy to send to a lab and test for cancer. 

What are my treatment options for squamous cell carcinoma?

Squamous cell carcinoma is usually slow to spread and easy to treat in its earliest stages. You should schedule an appointment at Advanced Laser and Skin Cancer Center for any unusual skin lesions and keep up on any recommended skin screenings. 

Advanced Laser and Skin Cancer Center might recommend one or more of these strategies to remove squamous cell carcinoma:

• Cryotherapy
• Surgical excision
• Laser therapy
• Mohs surgery

Mohs surgery, a specialty at Advanced Laser and Skin Cancer Center, is a technique that removes skin cancer layer by layer to preserve as much healthy skin around the lesion as possible. This is a great option for delicate areas like your hands, eyelids, or ears. 

If you have concerns about squamous cell carcinoma and other types of skin cancer, call Advanced Laser and Skin Cancer Center or schedule an appointment online today.