Electrodesiccation and curettage can be used to treat small tumors. This method leaves a round depigmented scar, compared with the linear scar left by surgical excision. Cryotherapy can be used to treat small lesions. Usually, two freeze-thaw cycles are used. However, this method has a lower cure rate.
Surgical excision has the highest cure rate.
It can be done on an outpatient basis with use of a local anesthetic. Margins of 5 mm are considered desirable. The procedure can be performed with primary closure or skin grafting, which may necessitate the cooperation of a plastic surgeon. Mohs' surgery is a micrographically controlled surgical technique of staged excision. The entire tissue margins are examined histologically as surgery proceeds, ensuring complete tumor removal and sparing the maximum amount of uninvolved tissue.