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Mohs surgery histopathology concordance in Australia
Ernest Tan1, Tim Elliott, Lawrence Yu
1Burswood Dermatology and Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, Perth, Western Australia, Australia. ernest@bursderm.com.au
Background:
Mohs micrographic surgery is an important technique for dealing with difficult non-melanoma skin cancers. The ability of the Mohs surgeon to correctly interpret the histopathology is crucial to the practice of this surgery. This study sought to assess the concordance between a Mohs surgeon and a dermatopathologist in the reading of Mohs section histopathology slides.
Methods:
This study was a retrospective study of Mohs frozen section histopathology slides of patients from a private Mohs practice. The slides were provided for assessment by a dermatopathologist who had to interpret the histopathology and mark on a Mohs map the location of the tumour.
Results:
We demonstrate a 95% agreement between the Mohs surgeon and the dermatopathologist in the interpretation of Mohs frozen section histopathology slides.
Conclusion:
An Australian Mohs surgeon is capable of correctly identifying and interpreting histopathology in non-melanoma skin cancers, and this compares favourably to an overseas study.
