[1] CCPDMA or Mohs surgery allows for the removal of a skin cancer with very narrow surgical margin and a high cure rate.

The cure rate with Mohs surgery cited by most studies is between 97% and 99.8% for primary basal-cell carcinoma, the most common type of skin cancer.

However, Mohs surgery should be reserved for the treatment of skin cancers in anatomic areas where tissue preservation is of utmost importance (face, neck, hands, lower legs, feet, genitals).

[4] Mohs surgery is most commonly used on the head and neck, where its use conserves normal tissue and decreases the risk of recurrence.

For these reasons, it is also considered for skin cancers on hands, feet, ankles, shins, nipples, or genitals.

[4][5] Mohs surgery should not be used on the trunk or extremities for uncomplicated, non-melanoma skin cancer of less than one centimeter in size.

[citation needed] The Mohs procedure is a pathology sectioning method that allows for the complete examination of the surgical margin.

It is different from the standard bread loafing technique of sectioning, where random samples of the surgical margin are examined.

Unlike a normal surgical excision, a Mohs surgery cut is performed at a beveling between 10 and 45 degrees to allow visibility of all skin layers during pathological diagnosis.

The amount of free margin removed is much less than the usual 4 to 6 mm required for the standard excision of skin cancers.

[9] After each surgical removal of tissue, the specimen is processed, cut on the cryostat and placed on slides, stained with H&E and then read by the Mohs surgeon/pathologist who examines the sections for cancerous cells.

[13] Some of Mohs' data revealed a cure rate as low as 96%, but these were often very large tumors, previously treated by other modalities.

It is superior to serial bread loafing at a 0.1 mm interval for improved false negative error rate, requiring less time, tissue handling, and fewer glass slides mounted.