Nonmelanoma Cancers of the Skin

To the Editor: In their review article “Nonmelanoma Cancers of the Skin” (Dec. 3 issue),¹ Drs. Preston and Stern should have pointed out that radiation therapy properly delivered by competent radiation oncologists results in a tumor recurrence rate of 5 percent for basal-cell carcinoma and 10 percent for squamous-cell carcinoma. Furthermore, their description of “undesirable contour changes” is not borne out by the existing literature. Chondritis, tissue necrosis, and wound breakdown, which they describe as potential complications of radiation therapy, are observed in less than 2 percent of the patients treated. Their statement that “Longer-term difficulties, including carcinogenesis and radiation . . .