Economic Impact of Early Detection and Treatment of Skin Cancer on the Health Care System

Non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC) ranks as the fifth most costly cancer to treat in the United States even though the mortality rate is not high [1].
In Romania, the dermatologist is the one who generally detects skin cancer, but any clinician, especially the primary care physician who has a constant connection with the patient, plays an important role in skin cancer detection. In the early detection stage, a good collaboration with the plastic surgeon permits the surgical excision of the tumour with oncologic safety margins and primary suture, resulting in minimal costs [2]. Unfortunately, a great number of patients involved in our study (>84%) showed up in more advanced stages which required a reconstructive method.