Basal Cell Carcinoma: Diagnosis, Management and Prevention

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

Can you explain why this review is new or telling new things?

 

The content of the article is broad but not in-depth. 

For Basal cell carcinoma diagnosis and management, the review only involves the basic information, but does not clarify the specific management.

 

Need to add one paragraph of abstract.   

 

The introduction needs minor revision. They could check for recently published articles; please add a specific introduction that will perfectly match.

 

The objectives of this study are absent. After the introduction, one paragraph for the objectives statement is necessary.

Comments on the Quality of English Language

Moderate editing of English language required

Author Response

We thank all the reviewers from the Core of Heart for their painstaking attitude towards making the manuscript readable. All have put a lot of effort into it, and we again express our gratitude.

Reviewer1

Can you explain why this review is new or telling new things?

 

The content of the article is broad but not in-depth. 

For Basal cell carcinoma diagnosis and management, the review only involves the basic information but does not clarify the specific management.

 Thanks a lot for your valuable input, sir. Surely, sir, the content of the article is broad. We have tried specific management in the management part of the article.

Need to add one paragraph to the abstract.   

 

Thank you, sir. A paragraph on the abstract was added, sir.

 

The introduction needs minor revision. They could check for recently published articles; please add a specific introduction that will perfectly match.

 

Done sir. Recent publications added

 

 

The objectives of this study are absent. After the introduction, one paragraph for the objectives statement is necessary.

 

Thanks a lot, sir. It is done.

 

Comments on the Quality of English Language

Moderate editing of the English language is required.

Thanks a lot, sir. Grammatical and language corrections were done and highlighted.

Reviewer 2 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The manuscript "Basal Cell Carcinoma: Diagnosis, Management, and Prevention" provides an in-depth overview of various aspects related to basal cell carcinoma (BCC), including its introduction, epidemiology, etiology, clinical features, histopathology, classification, diagnosis, management, prognosis, and prevention. The authors have compiled a comprehensive review of current knowledge on BCC, highlighting key points and recent research findings.

 

The introduction effectively sets the context for the manuscript by outlining the basics of basal cell carcinoma. It provides an appropriate definition and highlights the key characteristics of BCC, such as its slow growth, local aggressiveness, and low metastatic potential.

 

The epidemiological information provided gives a clear picture of the prevalence of BCC, particularly its prominence as a frequent cutaneous malignancy. The changing ratios of BCC to other skin cancers over time are discussed, and factors influencing these shifts are mentioned. The manuscript provides a detailed description of the clinical features of BCC, including its various presentations, such as nodular, cystic, superficial, and others. The emphasis on clinical variants and their significance adds depth to the understanding of BCC's diverse manifestations.

 

The histopathological aspects of BCC are explained in detail, including its origin from basal keratinocytes and hair follicles. The discussion on the histological variants and their aggressiveness is informative, offering a better understanding of the spectrum of BCC appearances.

 

The section on management is comprehensive and covers both surgical and non-surgical approaches. Surgical options, such as excision and Mohs micrographic surgery, are explained well. Non-surgical methods, including topical treatments and radiotherapy, are also described adequately. The inclusion of pros and cons for each management option is beneficial. The discussion on prognosis and risk factors is insightful, particularly the identification of poor prognostic factors, such as tumor size, depth of invasion, and certain clinical characteristics. This section effectively highlights the factors that influence the likelihood of recurrence and metastasis. The manuscript covers prevention strategies for BCC, emphasizing sun protection measures, lifestyle modifications, and the potential role of substances like Nicotinamide (NAM) in reducing the risk of BCC. This section provides actionable information for individuals seeking to prevent BCC development.

 

In summary, the manuscript "Basal Cell Carcinoma: Diagnosis, Management, and Prevention" offers a comprehensive review of the topic, catering to both clinicians and researchers interested in understanding various aspects of basal cell carcinoma. With some minor enhancements, such as visual aids and recent research updates, the manuscript could serve as a valuable resource in the field of dermatology and oncology.

 

Suggestions:

 

Figures and Visual aids: While the text is informative, the addition of figures, diagrams, or images depicting various clinical and histopathological features of BCC could enhance the clarity of the manuscript and provide visual context.

Conclusion: The manuscript could benefit from a concluding section that summarizes the key takeaways and emphasizes the most critical points discussed in the review.

Author Response

We thank all the reviewers from the Core of Heart for their painstaking attitude towards making the manuscript readable. All have put a lot of effort into it, and we again express our gratitude.

Reviewer2

Figures and Visual aids: While the text is informative, the addition of figures, diagrams, or images depicting various clinical and histopathological features of BCC could enhance the clarity of the manuscript and provide visual context.

 

Thanks a lot, sir. We have tried to add some clinical images.

 

Conclusion: The manuscript could benefit from a concluding section that summarizes the key takeaways and emphasizes the most critical points discussed in the review.

 

Thanks a lot, Sir.  A summary/conclusion is added, sir. Takeaways have been separately added.

Reviewer 3 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The presented work discusses diagnosis, management and prevention of basal cell carcinoma. But there are already review publications in the literature on the diagnosis and treatment of basal cell carcinoma, including regarding: guidelines, classification, surgical therapy, topical therapy, destructive therapy, photodynamic therapy, hedgehog inhibitors, radiotherapy, immunotherapyBCC; for example:

Ketty Peris et al. Diagnosis and treatment of basal cell carcinoma: European consensus-based interdisciplinary guidelines. Eur J Cancer 118 (2019), doi: 10.1016/j.ejca.2019.06.003

Tanese, K. Diagnosis and Management of Basal Cell Carcinoma. Curr. Treat. Options in Oncol. 20, 13 (2019), https://doi.org/10.1007/s11864-019-0610-0

I do not see in this work novelty, a basic criterion for works of publishers of scientific journals (MDPI, Elsevier and others).

Authors should include an abstract, clearly state what the purpose of the paper is, what the merits of their work are, and how their work differs from available work on this or similar topics.

Author Response

We thank all the reviewers from the Core of Heart for their painstaking attitude towards making the manuscript readable. All have put a lot of effort into it, and we again express our gratitude.

Reviewer3

The presented work discusses the diagnosis, management and prevention of basal cell carcinoma. But there are already review publications in the literature on the diagnosis and treatment of basal cell carcinoma, including regarding guidelines, classification, surgical therapy, topical therapy, destructive therapy, photodynamic therapy, hedgehog inhibitors, radiotherapy, immunotherapyBCC; for example:

 

Ketty Peris et al. Diagnosis and treatment of basal cell carcinoma: European consensus-based interdisciplinary guidelines. Eur J Cancer 118 (2019), doi 10.1016/j.ejca.2019.06.003

 

Tanese, K. Diagnosis and Management of Basal Cell Carcinoma. Curr. Treat. Options in Oncol. 20, 13 (2019), https://doi.org/10.1007/s11864-019-0610-0

Thanks a lot, sir for suggesting these studies. One of them is there in the paper, and the second one we are including in the paper.

 

I do not see in this work novelty, a basic criterion for works of publishers of scientific journals (MDPI, Elsevier and others).

 

Authors should include an abstract, and clearly state what the purpose of the paper is, what the merits of their work are, and how their work differs from available work on this or similar topics.

Thanks a lot for your valuable input, Sir.

No newer things or novelty in the article has been rightly pointed out by you, sir. We have only tried to revise the present literature on the subject and include all significant points in it. So far, how much, we have succeeded, your good self can judge it better.

An abstract has been added.

The purpose of the paper is added.

Our work is a review of the overall work done on the topic. To be honest, it is difficult to comment on the merits of our article. This can be judged by the veterans like you only. We have tried to include most of the literature. It will not differ from the available work but will add to the literature, if feasible.

                                                                Thanks a lot

Round 2

Reviewer 1 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

author performed significant changes, Accept in present form. 

Comments on the Quality of English Language

Minor editing of English language required

Author Response

Thanks a lot for your valuable time devoting towards the review of this manuscript to make it to the form which the readers would like and benefit from.

Reviewer 3 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

Dear Authors,

In my opinion, in every scientific paper, including review papers, there should be a clear explanation of "novelty", in the sense of what new work contributes to the available thematic knowledge? (what knowledge does it extend, complement, enrich?), what does it stand out from the available thematic works?). I asked for consideration and possible presentation/development of this issue in the purpose of the work.

The clear illumination of "novelty" indicates the creative inventiveness of the authors and does not give the impression of a mere compilation of published texts.

Author Response

Thanks a lot for your kind review. Regarding the novelty of the article, we tried to make it include the newer modalities of investigation and treatment which might, in our humble opinion, benefit the readers. 

Round 3

Reviewer 3 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors Regarding "novelty," in the revised version of the article, the authors have highlighted newer research and treatment methods that may be of interest and benefit to readers.

 

Accordingly, I recommend acceptance of the paper in its current form.