Mohs Surgery Specialist in New York

Who this is for

Patients diagnosed with skin cancer, or referred for skin-cancer removal, who want precise, tissue-sparing treatment from a fellowship-trained Mohs surgeon in Lower Manhattan.

A patient with a basal or squamous cell carcinoma, particularly on the face, ears, nose, or lips, where preserving healthy tissue and careful reconstruction matter most.

What Mohs surgery is, and why it clears skin cancer so precisely

Mohs micrographic surgery is the most precise method for removing common skin cancers. Rather than excising the visible tumor plus a wide margin and hoping it is all gone, the surgeon removes one thin layer at a time and examines each layer under the microscope immediately, mapping exactly where any remaining cancer cells lie.

Only the areas that still show cancer are treated again. That is why Mohs offers one of the highest cure rates of any skin-cancer treatment while removing the least healthy tissue possible – which is what preserves appearance afterward, particularly on the face.

How the same-day procedure works

Because the pathology is done on site, Mohs is usually a single-day procedure under local anesthesia. The tumor is removed, the tissue is examined while the patient waits, and either the work is complete or the surgeon takes one further precise layer exactly where it is needed.

Most patients leave the same day knowing the cancer has been fully cleared – something a standard excision cannot confirm until a pathology report returns days later.

Reconstruction is half the work

Removing the cancer is only half the work, particularly on the face, ears, nose, and lips where Mohs is most often used. Dr. Tzu is fellowship-trained in reconstruction as well as removal, so the surgeon who clears the cancer also repairs the site, with attention to how it will heal and settle.

Patients are often anxious that skin-cancer surgery means a conspicuous scar. In practice, the tissue-sparing nature of Mohs combined with meticulous reconstruction tends to leave results far more inconspicuous than expected.

That continuity – one specialist from diagnosis in hand through closure – is a genuine advantage of a fellowship-trained Mohs surgeon over splitting the removal and the repair between two offices.

Why fellowship training matters

Not every physician who performs Mohs completed a Mohs fellowship. Dr. Tzu did – a Procedural Dermatology Fellowship at the University of Pennsylvania – atop a Dermatopathology Fellowship at NYU Langone, which means she is trained to read the tissue slides herself.

She is triple board-certified, including in Micrographic Dermatologic Surgery and Dermatopathology, and a Fellow of the American College of Mohs Surgery (FACMS). For a cancer on the face, that depth of training is what distinguishes a fellowship-trained Mohs surgeon.

The skin cancers Mohs treats

Mohs is the treatment of choice for basal cell and squamous cell carcinomas – the two most common skin cancers – particularly when they sit on the face, ears, nose, lips, hands, or other areas where preserving tissue matters most.

It is also used for cancers that have recurred after prior treatment, or that have borders which are hard to define. For a patient diagnosed and referred for Mohs, this is the procedure the referring dermatologist is pointing toward.

What you can expect

• Highest cure rate. Mohs offers one of the highest cure rates for common skin cancers, because each layer is examined under the microscope before treatment ends.
• Tissue-sparing precision. Only cancerous tissue is removed, one thin layer at a time, preserving as much healthy skin as possible around the tumor.
• Same-day margin analysis. Tissue is examined during the visit, so in most cases the cancer is fully removed and the wound repaired in a single day.
• Fellowship-trained reconstruction. Dr. Tzu pairs Mohs removal with meticulous reconstructive closure, which matters most for cancers on the face, ears, and nose.

Common concerns we address

• Basal cell carcinoma
• Squamous cell carcinoma
• Skin cancers on the face, ears, nose, and lips
• Recurrent or previously treated skin cancers

How we approach care

• Mohs micrographic surgery
• Same-day margin analysis
• Reconstructive closure

Related Treatments

Related Conditions

Frequently Asked Questions