Preparing For Mohs Surgery
Cancer can be a very scary diagnosis no matter what type of cancer that it is. One type of cancer that many people can get from spending too much time in the sun is skin cancer. In fact, it is estimated that over 85,000 cases of melanoma will be diagnosed in the United States in the year 2017. A scary estimation is that one person dies from melanoma each hour. So it is very important that it is taken care of as soon as possible. A procedure that has become popular for the treatment of skin cancer is Mohs Surgery. This is a procedure where the doctor takes a razor and trims a layer of skin off, and repeats this until all the cancer is completely gone. Here are a few different things that you should do to prepare for Mohs Surgery:
Blood Thinners
As you can imagine your body is naturally going to bleed when the skin is getting cut back to remove the cancer. It is very important that the doctor is able to get the bleeding under control. The doctor will likely tell you that you should not take any blood thinners a few weeks in advance. This is in an effort to be prepared for the surgery and to allow the doctor to get the blood under control. Along with over the counter blood thinners, you should stay away from natural blood thinners such as fish oil, garlic, ginseng, and vitamin E.
Arrange For A Ride
Most of the time only a local anesthetic will be needed to numb the area being cut on. However, you do not know how your body will react to the surgery. It is possible that the anesthesia makes you very tired. You may also feel a bit tired from the amount of adrenaline that was going through your body. It is important that you do not have to drive home because you might be putting your own and everyone else in a lot of danger.
Prepare For Recovery
You do not need to prepare for a major recovery but it is nice to have a few things on hand. The first thing that you should do is stock up on your medicated ointment so you do not have to go to the store right after your surgery. You also want to make sure you rest for the rest of the day, and let your body flush itself of the anesthesia.
Contact a dermatology clinic for more information and assistance.
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