Cryotherapy

Cryotherapy is commonly used for:

• Actinic keratoses (sunspots): rough, scaly patches caused by sun damage, which can sometimes develop into skin cancer if left untreated
• Seborrhoeic keratoses: harmless, raised, often brown “stuck-on” growths that become more common with age
• Viral warts
• Skin tags
• Molluscum contagiosum

 In selected cases, your doctor may also recommend cryotherapy for certain superficial skin cancers. Other treatment options will be discussed with you where they’re more appropriate. 

 Not every spot should be frozen. Cryotherapy destroys the treated tissue, so a lesion that needs to be examined under a microscope must be assessed or biopsied first. That’s why every treatment at our clinic starts with a skin examination. If a spot looks suspicious, we’ll recommend the safest next step, such as a biopsy, instead of freezing it. 

The liquid nitrogen is applied with a fine spray or a cotton-tipped applicator for a few seconds, until a small frozen area forms over the lesion. Some lesions need more than one freeze in the same session.

Most people feel a cold, stinging or burning sensation during treatment and for a short time afterwards. Each lesion takes only seconds, so a full appointment is usually quick.

• Within hours: the area usually becomes red and swollen, and a blister may form. This is a normal part of healing.
• Over the following days: the blister dries and forms a scab.
• Healing time depends on the area treated: about 5 to 10 days on the face, around 3 weeks on the hands, and longer on the lower legs, where healing can take up to a few months.

Some lesions, especially warts, may need more than one treatment.

 Cryotherapy is a well-established treatment, but like any medical procedure it carries some risks. Your doctor will discuss these with you before treatment:

• Pain, redness, swelling and blistering (common and temporary)
• Lighter or darker patches of skin. Lightening can be permanent and is more likely in darker skin tones.
• Scarring (uncommon)
• Temporary numbness or tingling
• Infection (uncommon)
• The lesion may not clear completely or may return, so follow-up is important

Cryotherapy isn’t suitable for everyone. Let us know if you have Raynaud’s disease, cold urticaria (an allergy to cold), cryoglobulinaemia, poor circulation, or if you’ve reacted badly to cryotherapy in the past. Your doctor will assess your skin, your medical history and the lesion itself before recommending the best treatment for you.

Medicare rebates may apply for eligible services. Please ask our team for details.