New clinic to specialise in facial skin cancer removal in Cork

A clinic which specialises in the surgical removal of facial skin cancers has been opened in a region which has the highest incidence of skin cancer in Irelandy.

The Mohs surgery unit at the South Infirmary Victoria University Hospital (SIVUH) in Cork — the only such public clinic outside Dublin — was hailed yesterday as a major advancement in skin cancer treatment services in the south.

“I would like to congratulate the whole skin cancer team at SIVUH for the effective multi-disciplinary approach taken in managing patients with skin cancer,” said minister of state Kathleen Lynch.“While many of these cancers have very good clinical outcomes, they can occur on the face and lead to disfigurement.

“The benefit of this highly specialist new Mohs service in Cork will be felt by many patients who have high-risk facial lesions.”

Mohs surgery was developed by American surgeon Frederic Mohs to deal with basal cell skin cancers in high-risk facial areas.

The process involves repeated surgery around a skin cancer until it is completely removed. These cancers may otherwise result in serious deformity and can be fatal.

The specialised surgical method provides significantly better cure rates than conventional surgery, and reduces the risk of recurrence by around two thirds.

SIVUH’s service was set up by and is led by consultant dermatologist and Mohs surgeon Catherine Gleeson, with Chris Cotter, a consultant maxillary facial and Mohs surgeon.

The only other public Mohs service is in Dublin’s St James’s Hospital.

The National Cancer Registry shows the south coast has the country’s highest incidence of skin cancer.

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