Cyrotherapy is an established treatment for dermatological lesions and can be used for a variety of conditions including benign lesions such as viral warts, seborrheic keratosis, sebaceous hyperplasia, haemangiomas and lentigo, and pre-malignant lesions including actinic keratosis and Bowen’s disease.
Many, if not most, GPs in the UK will no longer provide cryotherapy through the NHS for benign lesions.1 In fact, in November 2018 the NHS released the Evidence-Based Interventions: Guidance for CCGs document, which states in its update description for the removal of benign skin lesions that they ‘cannot be offered for cosmetic reasons’ and should only be offered in situations where the lesion is causing symptoms outlined in at least one of its criteria. Some examples of criteria include: the lesion is unavoidably and significantly traumatised on a regular basis, repeated infection, regular…
