Due to a contract dispute between UnitedHealthcare and Ascension Wisconsin, we understand many of our patients have questions and concerns. We want to reassure you and provide clarity regarding your care.
We are still in-network with UnitedHealthcare, and that contract remains in effect until October 1, 2025. Please note that even if you receive a letter from UnitedHealthcare stating otherwise, you are still covered for your appointments with us.
If you have an upcoming appointment, please do not cancel it at this time. We are closely monitoring the negotiations and will provide updates as soon as they become available. Our goal is to ensure you continue to receive the care you need with as little disruption as possible.
For more information, you can visit the official negotiation pages for each organization:
We appreciate your patience and will keep you informed of any changes.
Total removal of a skin cancer, which may involve several surgical stages, is usually completed in one day. After the surgery, a decision is made as to the best way to manage the wound created by the surgery.
Using the Mohs micrographic surgical technique, the percentage of success is very high, often 95% to 99%, even if other forms of treatment have failed. Therefore, with this technique, an excellent chance of cure is achieved. However, no one can guarantee a 100% chance of cure.
Yes. Most forms of therapy will leave a scar. However, the Mohs micrographic surgical procedure tends to minimize this as much as possible. After the wound is healed, you may wish to have the scar improved. Generally, time alone will improve all scars.
After the initial tissue is removed, the surgeon can pinpoint with the microscope the areas where there is cancer and then selectively remove tissue only from those areas in the following surgical stages. In this way, the skin cancer is traced out to its roots with little guesswork involved, which results in:
1. The removal of as little normal tissue as possible.
2. The highest chance of curing the patient (under certain circumstances).
When we have determined that the skin cancer has been completely removed, a decision is made about what to do with the wound created by the surgery. Usually, there are two choices:
All types of skin cancer will grow and invade nearby tissue. How fast a skin cancer will grow is unpredictable and varies from person to person. Sometimes skin cancer will destroy important structures such as the nose, lip, or eye. Occasionally, skin cancers can be life threatening.
Talk with your primary care physician or dermatologist for a referral, or schedule a consultation with one of our Mohs Surgeons by calling (414) 326-1514.
During Mohs micrographic surgery, the tissue is examined in a different and more thorough manner than is typically performed by a pathologist associated with an operating room. By visualizing "frozen sections", Mohs Micrographic Surgery examines the entire sides and undersurface of the excised tissue. For example if one looks at a loaf of bread, Mohs Micrographic Surgery examines the whole crust rather than a few slices of the loaf.
