Incidence of incomplete excision in surgically treated basal cell carcinoma: a retrospective clinical audit

All the patients who had excision of basal cell carcinoma at the regional plastic surgery unit at Manchester over a period of 2 years from January 1995 to December 1996 were included in a retrospective audit. A total of 879 lesions were excised in 754 patients. In 41 lesions (4.7%) the tumour was incompletely excised, 16 of these lesions were further excised; the rest were managed by regular follow-up. The mean age of the incomplete excision group was slightly higher. The site where the incomplete excision rate was highest was the scalps followed by the ear, canthi,eyebrows and nose. There was a higher incidence of squamous differentiation and presence of foci of squamous cell carcinoma in the lesions excised incompletely. There was no statistically significant difference among the different groups of surgeons but in individual grades the rate was lower where more wounds were repaired by direct closure. The concept of a complexity ratio (number of wounds repaired by other methods/number of wounds repaired by direct closure) can be helpful in comparing the incomplete excision rates of different grades of surgeons or departments. The excision of basal cell carcinoma is one of the commonest procedures performed by all grades of surgeons in a plastic surgery department. Incomplete excision leads to further surgery or prolonged follow-up, thus significantly affecting the outcome. As the incidence of incomplete excision can be precisely monitored, it may be a useful tool for clinical governance.