13943 Factors influencing rates of complete excision of basal cell carcinomas and melanomas

Abstract

Skin cancer, composed of both melanoma and nonmelanoma skin cancer (NMSC), can be treated with myriad modalities, including surgical excision. The primary end point for surgical excision of melanoma-in-situs (MIS) and NMSC is tumor clearance rate, determined postoperatively by the presence of tumor-free resection margins in the excised sample. This study explored which factors impacted the success of a MIS or NMSC excision. We conducted a retrospective study of 5800 standard excisions of MIS and basal cell carcinomas (BCC) performed by dermatologists, general surgeons, otolaryngologists, and plastic surgeons from 13 different Kaiser Permanente centers.