New skin cancer treatment available at Mosaic

By Kyle Schmidt

The considered “gold standard” of skin cancer treatment will now be provided by Mosaic Life Care in St. Joseph.

With the help of Dr. Isadore Tarantino, Moh surgery will be an available treatment at the Mosaic Plastic Surgery and Dermatology center. The Chamber of Commerce recognized Mosaic Life Care for its success and service with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Thursday.

“I started here with Mosaic in October to provide Mohs services to the patients of Mosaic and to the community of St. Joe,” Tarantino said. “Mohs surgery is much needed in the Northland, specifically in St. Joe.”

The treatment is considered the “gold standard” because of its up-to 99% success rate.

“The patient comes in and I cut out right around the skin cancer and test it in real time,” Tarantino said. “I’m able to process it and stain it appropriately. I look under the microscope as the pathologist and I can see down to the cellular level if there’s any cancer or not.”

Mohs surgery separates itself from any other skin cancer treatment because it allows the doctor to assess 100% of the tissue margin.

“So Mohs surgery is offered for a wide variety of skin cancers, typically the more common ones, basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma,” Tarantino said. “And even rare and aggressive forms of cancer such as melanoma and other types of rare cancers as well.”

Not only is this a big win for Mosaic Life Care, Tarantino emphasized how big of an accomplishment it is for him.

“This day means the world to me,” Tarantino said. “This is an unbelievable opportunity for me to provide the best care possible for these patients in this community.”

The procedure is offered to all patients and is covered by most insurance.

“Mohs surgery offers patients the opportunity to walk through the door with cancer and walk out cancer-free,” Tarantino said.