In English | En español
Questions About Cancer? 1-800-4-CANCER

Skin Cancer Treatment (PDQ®)

  • Last Modified: 05/09/2013

Page Options

  • Print This Page
  • Print This Document
  • View Entire Document
  • Email This Document

Treatment Options for Nonmelanoma Skin Cancer

Basal Cell Carcinoma
Squamous Cell Carcinoma

A link to a list of current clinical trials is included for each treatment section. For some types or stages of cancer, there may not be any trials listed. Check with your doctor for clinical trials that are not listed here but may be right for you.

Basal Cell Carcinoma

Treatment of basal cell carcinoma may include the following:

Treatment of recurrent basal cell carcinoma is usually Mohs micrographic surgery.

Treatment of basal cell carcinoma that is metastatic or cannot be treated with local therapy is usually chemotherapy or a clinical trial of a new treatment.

Check for U.S. clinical trials from NCI's list of cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with basal cell carcinoma of the skin. For more specific results, refine the search by using other search features, such as the location of the trial, the type of treatment, or the name of the drug. General information about clinical trials is available from the NCI Web site.

Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Treatment of squamous cell carcinoma may include the following:

Treatment of recurrent squamous cell carcinoma may include the following:

  • Simple excision.
  • Mohs micrographic surgery.
  • Radiation therapy.

Treatment of squamous cell carcinoma that is metastatic or cannot be treated with local therapy may include the following:

Check for U.S. clinical trials from NCI's list of cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the skin. For more specific results, refine the search by using other search features, such as the location of the trial, the type of treatment, or the name of the drug. General information about clinical trials is available from the NCI Web site.