What should you know about nose graft skin cancer?

Skin cancer surgery can leave a wound that is too large or deep to close comfortably with stitches alone. A graft uses healthy skin from another body area to cover that wound. The surgeon selects the donor site and graft thickness according to the location, depth and contour of the nasal defect. The graft is secured while new blood vessels grow into it. Its early appearance can be swollen, dark, crusted or uneven before it settles.

Follow the dressing instructions closely and keep the graft and donor site protected as directed. Do not pick crusts, rub the nose or apply cosmetic products until your surgical team permits them. Avoid pressure from glasses, tight masks or sleeping positions if advised. Keep follow-up appointments so the team can check graft attachment, wound healing and the original cancer site. Once healed, use sun protection because treated skin and scars can change colour with ultraviolet exposure.

Contact the surgical team promptly if pain, redness, warmth, swelling or drainage is increasing, or if the graft becomes loose or repeatedly bleeds. Fever, a spreading red area, foul-smelling fluid or sudden colour change also needs review. Seek urgent help for heavy bleeding, breathing difficulty or rapidly worsening swelling. A new sore, scab or changing mark on the nose after treatment should be examined rather than assumed to be part of normal scarring.

Ask which donor site will be used, how the graft will be secured, how long dressings stay on and when washing is allowed. Clarify which activities, glasses or facial products to avoid, how follow-up will monitor the cancer site, and what changes should trigger a call.