D7440 — Excision of malignant tumor — lesion diameter up to 1.25 cm
D7440 removes a malignant tumour up to 1.25 centimetres in diameter, which is deeper work than excising a surface lesion.
This code belongs to a set of eleven covering biopsy and lesion excision. The clinical detail lives in the biopsy and lesion excision guide; the code-level detail is here.
This page explains what that code number commits the office to, what it usually costs, how plans treat it, and — the part that causes most of the confusion — how it differs from the codes sitting immediately either side of it.
D7440 in detail
Size — up to 1.25 centimetres. The measurement has to be recorded in the chart; it is what separates this code from the large-lesion code beside it.
D7440 compared with its closest relatives
D7441 — Excision of malignant tumor — lesion diameter greater than 1.25 cm: It is the large-lesion version.
D7415 — Excision of malignant lesion — complicated: It is the complicated variant, requiring a supporting narrative.
D7465 — Destruction of lesion(s) by physical or chemical method, by report: It is the by-report code used when nothing more specific fits.
D7414 — Excision of malignant lesion — greater than 1.25 cm: It is the large-lesion version.
D7440 sits in a group of eleven codes in total; the remainder are linked at the foot of this page. The distinction is clinical, not administrative: each of these describes work that was genuinely done differently, and the fee follows the work.
Every code in this group
These codes describe the same broad procedure and differ in one respect each. Each has its own page with its own fee range and coverage notes.
Questions about D7440
What procedure is D7440?
Read literally, D7440 means excision of malignant tumor, lesion diameter up to 1.25 cm — and payers do read it literally.
What should I expect to pay for D7440?
Between $900–$2,400 in most practices — and that is the figure before any benefit is applied, not what you would pay at the desk.
Is D7440 a covered benefit?
Typically, yes — basic / major oral surgery benefits, typically 70–80%. What varies between plans is the frequency limit rather than whether the procedure is covered at all.
What is the difference between D7440 and D7441?
D7441 is excision of malignant tumor, lesion diameter greater than 1.25 cm: it is the large-lesion version. Because that is the only difference, a reviewer who disagrees with it simply reprices the claim to D7441 rather than refusing it.
Also known as: oral biopsy, mouth lesion, oral cancer, lesion excision, pathology.