Skin Cancer and Melanoma Surgery Cost Calculator
This calculator estimates the out-of-pocket cost of skin cancer and melanoma treatment in Korea and keeps the same pure calculation model as the Korean page. Skin cancer is a malignant tumor of the skin: basal cell carcinoma (BCC) and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) arise from the epidermal keratinocytes and share code C44, while melanoma arises from melanocytes and is code C43. The cost depends on the cancer type and the treatment chosen — wide local excision, Mohs micrographic surgery, wide excision with sentinel lymph node biopsy, or wide excision with lymph node dissection — and can range from a few hundred thousand to tens of millions of won. The single most important rule is the cancer special case: because BCC, SCC (C44) and melanoma (C43) are all malignant C-codes, a registered patient pays 5% instead of 20% for five years, regardless of the type. Many people wrongly assume BCC and SCC are "not cancer," but C44 is a malignant neoplasm code and is fully eligible. All figures use 2026 Korean rules.
Basal cell carcinoma vs squamous cell carcinoma vs melanoma
Basal cell carcinoma (BCC) is the most common skin cancer, favors sun-exposed areas such as the face, and very rarely metastasizes, so its prognosis is excellent; complete removal matters, and on the face the tissue-sparing Mohs technique gives the highest cure rate. Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is the second most common; it can metastasize, so it needs a safe excision margin, and high-risk lesions (large size, perineural invasion, recurrence) prompt lymph node assessment and adjuvant therapy. It can progress from precancerous actinic keratosis, so early detection matters.
Melanoma (C43), which arises from melanocytes, is the most dangerous skin cancer: highly curable when thin but a fast metastasizer once advanced. The vertical tumor thickness (Breslow thickness) is the key indicator that drives both prognosis and the excision margin as well as whether a sentinel lymph node biopsy is needed. Advanced melanoma is often treated with adjuvant immunotherapy or targeted therapy after surgery. All three types are malignant neoplasms, so all three qualify for the 5% cancer special case.
- BCC (C44): most common, rarely metastasizes, Mohs favored on the face — still a 5% special-case malignancy.
- SCC (C44): can metastasize; safe margins and risk-based node assessment; 5% special case.
- Melanoma (C43): most dangerous; Breslow thickness sets margins and sentinel node biopsy; 5% special case.
- Benign moles, actinic keratosis, and purely cosmetic removals are NOT cancer and are outside the special case.
Wide excision vs Mohs vs sentinel node biopsy vs lymph node dissection
Wide local excision removes the tumor with a safe margin and closes primarily; for melanoma the margin follows Breslow thickness (about 0.5 cm for in situ, 1 cm for ≤1 mm, 1–2 cm for 1–2 mm, and 2 cm above 2 mm), and a large defect is rebuilt with a skin graft or local flap. Mohs micrographic surgery shaves the tumor in stages and checks the entire margin under the microscope with frozen sections, removing only what is needed until no cancer remains; it preserves the most normal tissue, gives the highest cure rate, is standard for BCC/SCC on the face, nose, eyelid, and ear, and has been covered by Korean NHI since 2018.
Sentinel lymph node biopsy finds the first node a melanoma would spread to and biopsies it for staging, using preoperative lymphoscintigraphy and an intraoperative gamma probe, generally when Breslow thickness is 0.8 mm or greater or ulceration is present. Lymph node dissection clears a regional nodal basin when nodal metastasis is confirmed (clinical N+); it is done under general anesthesia with drains, lengthens the stay, and needs management of lymphedema, and advanced melanoma or high-risk SCC may add adjuvant immunotherapy or targeted therapy afterward.
- Wide local excision: covered procedure ~KRW 700,000, same-day or 1–2 day stay; melanoma widens the margin by thickness.
- Mohs micrographic surgery: covered ~KRW 1,500,000, staged mapping, tissue-sparing, highest cure rate for facial NMSC.
- Wide excision + sentinel node biopsy: covered ~KRW 2,800,000, melanoma staging with lymphoscintigraphy.
- Wide excision + lymph node dissection: covered ~KRW 4,500,000, general anesthesia, drains, 4–7 day stay.
The cancer special case covers every skin cancer type at 5%
The biggest cost driver is the cancer (severe-disease) special case, registration code V193. Its eligible diagnosis codes are the malignant neoplasm range C00–C97, which includes all skin cancers — BCC and SCC (C44) and melanoma (C43). Unlike a brain tumor, where benign versus malignant coding matters, every skin cancer here is malignant, so registration always drops the covered self-pay from 20% to 5%.
The special case lasts five years from the confirmation date and can be re-registered if the cancer recurs or persists. If you register within 30 days of diagnosis, it applies retroactively to the confirmation date; later registration applies from the application date. Within the five years, the 5% rate also covers adjuvant immunotherapy/targeted therapy and follow-up imaging, not just the surgery. Note that removing a benign mole or a precancerous actinic keratosis, or a purely cosmetic removal, is not cancer and is not eligible.
- BCC / SCC (C44): both malignant neoplasm codes — 5% special-case self-pay for 5 years.
- Melanoma (C43): 5% for 5 years, with margins and sentinel biopsy set by Breslow thickness.
- Register within 30 days of diagnosis for a retroactive start date.
- Cosmetic scar revision after excision is non-covered and outside the special case and the ceiling.
Reconstruction, adjuvant therapy, cosmetic revision, and the ceiling/credit
A large defect after excision is rebuilt with a covered skin graft (STSG/FTSG) or local flap add-on, which lengthens the stay for graft/flap monitoring. Advanced melanoma or high-risk SCC adds covered adjuvant immunotherapy (pembrolizumab, nivolumab) or targeted therapy (BRAF/MEK inhibitors); because these are covered, the special-case 5% applies, but the full annual drug cost is estimated separately in the targeted/immuno cancer drug calculator. Functional closure is covered, but cosmetic scar revision, fine flap refinement, and laser are non-covered, so they sit outside the special case and the out-of-pocket ceiling.
The annual out-of-pocket ceiling refunds covered self-pay (including the 5% special-case amount) above the income-tier cap, which for 2026 is provisionally about KRW 900,000 to KRW 8,430,000 by income decile (finalized each August). Non-covered items — cosmetic reconstruction and upper-grade room surcharges — are excluded from the ceiling and belong to the private indemnity (silson) domain, where covered self-pay is reimbursed after the generation-specific deductible, non-covered costs at the non-covered rate, and the room surcharge usually at only 50%. For the medical expense tax credit, a registered severe-disease (cancer) patient has no KRW 7,000,000 cap under Income Tax Act Article 59-4 — the full out-of-pocket amount above 3% of salary is credited at 15% — while an unregistered patient keeps the cap. Insurance reimbursement and the ceiling refund are excluded from the credit base.
How to read the result
Enter the cancer type (BCC, SCC, or melanoma), the treatment (wide excision, Mohs, sentinel node biopsy, or lymph node dissection), special-case registration, and toggles for skin graft/flap reconstruction, adjuvant immuno/targeted therapy (melanoma and high-risk SCC only), and non-covered cosmetic reconstruction, plus ICU and ward days, hospital level, indemnity generation, and income decile. The result shows the 20% versus 5% special-case comparison, a four-way treatment comparison, the ceiling refund, the private indemnity estimate, the tax credit, and the final net cost.
This is a cost-planning estimate based on 2026 Korean rules, not medical advice. Public single-price tables for skin cancer surgery do not exist, so figures are defensible market-estimate ranges that vary with the type, thickness, extent of resection, whether reconstruction is used, length of stay, complications, and hospital. Confirm details with the treating dermatologic/surgical oncology team, the insurer, and the hospital quote — especially the non-covered cosmetic revision and the separate adjuvant drug cost.
This calculator is based on Korean rules (2026 National Health Insurance cancer special-case program covering all skin cancer codes C43 and C44 at 5% for five years, skin graft/local flap reconstruction and adjuvant immuno/targeted therapy as covered add-ons, cosmetic scar revision as a non-covered cost, the out-of-pocket ceiling, and Income Tax Act Article 59-4 medical expense tax credit), plus market cost estimates for wide local excision, Mohs micrographic surgery, sentinel lymph node biopsy, and lymph node dissection. Figures are planning estimates, not medical advice, an insurer decision, or a hospital quote.