Other Treatment
Radiation therapy for nonmelanoma skin cancer may be recommended for people who may not be able to have surgery because of the location of the skincancer. Radiation therapy may also be a treatment choice if age or other health conditions make surgery too risky. Radiation therapy is most often used for older adults. It may lead to other skin cancers in younger people as they age.
Other treatments for people who cannot have surgery or radiation include:
The Skin Cancer Risk from Tanning Beds
I didn’t grow up tanning. I have fair skin and red hair, and I didn’t like lying out in the sun or even going to the beach. And when I was exposed to the sun, I didn’t get tan. I just got a little pink and freckled. In fact, I got my first tan when I went to Florida in 2001. I was 17 years old, and I was really excited about how I looked. When I returned home, I started going to a tanning salon to keep up the color. Over the next two and a half years I returned once a week. I wasn’t super dark;...
Read the The Skin Cancer Risk from Tanning Beds article > >
- Fluorouracil (5-FU) or imiquimod creams or lotions, which are applied to the skin.
- Photodynamic therapy (PDT), which uses medicines and a special light to treat skin cancer on or very close to the surface of the skin.
- Cryosurgery. Cryosurgery destroys the skin cancer by freezing it with liquid nitrogen.
These three treatments may also work well for people who have low-risk shallow cancers, such as squamous cell carcinoma in situ (Bowen's disease) or low-risk superficial basal cell carcinoma.1
Lasers, such as the carbon dioxide laser, may be used to treat superficial basal cell carcinomas and actinic keratoses. Lasers use an intense beam of light as a scalpel to remove skin cancer.
WebMD Medical Reference from Healthwise
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