(NEXSTAR) – A video of Joe Biden taken in Delaware over the holiday weekend appeared to show a scar on the former president’s forehead, prompting a spokesperson to reveal that Biden recently underwent Mohs surgery.
Mohs surgery, also known as Mohs micrographic surgery, is a procedure commonly performed on patients with certain types of skin cancer. Developed by American surgeon Frederic E. Mohs in the late 1930s, it’s “considered the most effective technique” for surgically treating basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma, the Skin Cancer Foundation writes.
During the procedure, layers of skin containing cancerous cells are surgically removed a little at a time, after which the surgeon will analyze each layer until no cancer is detected in the tissue. This allows surgeons to spare any healthy skin surrounding the affected area.
“As a result, it is considered the gold standard treatment for high-risk skin cancers, such as those located on the head and neck or those with aggressive growth patterns,” Elise Ng, M.D. the director of dermatologic surgery at John Hopkins, writes of the procedure.
The cure rate of Mohs surgery is around 99% for those getting treatment for a first-time basal cell carcinoma, and 94% for cases where the cancer recurs. The cure rate for squamous cell carcinoma is between 95% and 99% for first-time cases and 90% for cases that recur, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
To help with the healing process, doctors may use stitches or skin grafts depending on the size and location of the wound.
It’s unclear which type of skin cancer Biden, 82, has been diagnosed with, or when he had the surgery. In addition to the footage of Biden from this weekend (first obtained by Inside Edition), the former president attended a funeral for former Delaware Gov. Mike Castle on Aug. 22 with a bandage over the same area, as seen in photos published by Delaware’s News Journal.
News of Biden’s surgery comes months after his office revealed in May that he had been diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer which had spread to his bones.
“Cancer touches us all,” Biden wrote on social media at the time. “Like so many of you, Jill and I have learned that we are strongest in the broken places.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
