Skin Cancer Center

State-of-the-art care for difficult skin cancers

Skin cancer is the most common human malignancy. While most cancers of the skin are easily treated with excellent prognosis, some forms of skin cancer can be life-threatening. The Skin Cancer Center at Froedtert & The Medical College of Wisconsin specializes in the care of skin cancers that are difficult to treat. This includes cancers in functionally and cosmetically sensitive areas (face, eyelids, nose, lips, ears), large cancers, rare skin tumors, recurrent or previously treated cancers, skin cancers occurring in solid organ transplant recipients and cancers best treated by an interdisciplinary approach.

To make an appointment or for more information, call 866-680-0505 or use our online form.

Expert Resources

More than one million Americans develop a skin cancer every year. Most cases can be treated effectively by community dermatologists. However, extensive skin cancer lesions or lesions growing in difficult locations can require advanced treatment capabilities.

The Skin Cancer Center at Froedtert & The Medical College has the expertise and resources to deal with these difficult cancers. The program is led by Marcy Neuburg, MD, a Medical College of Wisconsin dermatologist with extensive experience in the surgical treatment of challenging skin malignancies. Dr. Neuburg has been included in the “Best Doctors in America,” a prestigious list that represents the top 3 percent of the nation’s practicing board-certified physicians.

The Hub Model

The Clinical Cancer Center's hub model builds the entire care experience around patients. Dedicated program coordinators answer questions, address concerns, coordinate treatment and help you along in your journey.

The Skin Cancer Center team also includes specialists in plastic and reconstructive surgery, trained skin cancer surgical technicians and an experienced program coordinator. Learn more about our exceptional staff.

Mohs Micrographic Surgery

The Skin Cancer Center specializes in Mohs micrographic surgery. Mohs micrographic surgery is performed by fellowship trained dermatologists. The primary advantage of this surgery is that it offers the highest cure rates (97 to 99 percent) of all available treatment modalities. At the same time, Mohs surgery allows for the selective removal of the areas affected by the skin cancer while preserving as much of the surrounding tissue as possible.

The Mohs procedure is performed in specially designed outpatient procedure rooms in the Skin Cancer Center, located within the Froedtert & The Medical College of Wisconsin Clinical Cancer Center. The surgery is done using local anesthesia, similar to what would be used for minor dental work. During the Mohs procedure, the surgeon uses a scalpel to remove thin layers of tissue from the area containing the skin cancer. While the patient waits, the excised skin is processed in the adjacent laboratory. This processing generates very thin slices, which are placed on glass slides. The slides are then examined under a microscope by the surgeon. If any cancer cells are seen during the microscopic examination, these are noted on a map and that map is used by the surgeon as a guide in taking an additional layer from the appropriate area. Each layer is checked under a microscope to see whether the margin is cancer-free. The patient stays in the procedure room until all the cancerous tissue has been excised and the surgical margins are cancer free.

High Cure Rate

Mohs micrographic surgery has a greater than 97 percent cure rate for basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma, the two most common forms of skin cancer.

Smaller Excisions

The Mohs procedure lets the surgeon remove only as much tissue as is necessary to fully excise the cancer. This is important for patients with extensive lesions, especially those on the face. It is also beneficial for treating skin cancers in difficult locations, such as a lesion on an eyelid, lip, ear or nose.

Advanced Training

Dr. Neuburg has received advanced fellowship training in Mohs micrographic surgery and has performed thousands of Mohs procedures.

Specialized Facilities

The procedure room has been designed specifically for Mohs surgery. The unit features specialized instrumentation and an onsite skin cancer pathology lab and is staffed by specially trained laboratory and surgical technicians.

Reconstructive Capabilities

Achieving excellent functional and cosmetic results for skin cancer patients is one of the priorities of the Skin Cancer Center. Following successful removal of the skin cancer using Mohs surgery, Dr. Neuburg performs reconstructive procedures to repair the surgical wound and minimize scarring. Patients who need more complicated reconstruction have full access to Medical College of Wisconsin plastic and reconstructive surgeons.

Dr. Neuburg also specializes in the removal of skin cancer involving the eyelids. Ophthalmologists from the Froedtert & The Medical College of Wisconsin Eye Institute who specialize in reconstruction of eyelids perform reconstructive procedures for patients with skin cancers near the eye.

Comprehensive Care for Advanced Cancers

Patients with advanced skin cancers or rare, aggressive tumors often need several different forms of treatment. In addition to surgical removal of the cancer, these patients may require chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy. Specialized imaging and biopsy procedures to check nearby lymph nodes may also be necessary. The Skin Cancer Center works with specialist physicians throughout the Clinical Cancer Center. These specialists include medical oncologists, radiation oncologists, and plastic surgeons to provide comprehensive care for patients with advanced cancers.

Where to Go

Doctors in the Skin Cancer Center see patients on the fourth floor of the Clinical Cancer Center.

If you’re visiting the Froedtert & The Medical College of Wisconsin Clinical Cancer Center for the first time, a little additional information will help your first visit go smoothly.

Patients in the Skin Cancer Center may be eligible to take part in clinical trials for new cancer therapies.

Pigmented Lesion Monitoring

Patients who have had malignant melanoma have a higher lifetime risk of developing a second melanoma compared to patients who have never had melanoma. For this reason, ongoing skin surveillance is an important part of the follow-up care for melanoma patients. The Skin Cancer Center includes ongoing surveillance for these patients as well as patients who have unusual moles or who have a family history of melanoma.

Skin Cancer Clinic for Transplant Patients

Anti-rejection medications taken by patients who have received organ transplants can put them at higher risk for skin cancer. The Skin Cancer Center collaborates with the Transplant Center at Froedtert & The Medical College to provide education about skin cancer risks and skin cancer surveillance for patients who have received solid organ transplants.