Diagnosing Basal Cell Carcinoma
How is Basal Cell Carcinoma diagnosed?
The following procedures may be used to detect (find) and diagnose non-melanoma skin cancers.
- Skin examination
A doctor or nurse checks the skin for bumps or spots that look abnormal in color, size, shape, or texture. - Biopsy
All or part of the abnormal-looking growth is removed from the skin and viewed under a microscope by a pathologist to see if cancer cells are present. There are 3 main types of skin biopsies: - Shave biopsy
A sterile razor blade is used to “shave-off” the abnormal-looking growth. - Punch biopsy
A special instrument called a punch or a trephine is used to remove a circle of tissue from the abnormal-looking growth. - Excisional biopsy
A scalpel, punch biopsy, or shave biopsy tool is used to remove the entire growth.

Looking at a biopsy is one of the
ways of Diagnosing Basal Cell
Carcinoma.

