Approaches to outpatient cryodestruction as a method of choice for the treatment of recurrent basal cell carcinoma of the scalp

Abstract

Skin cancer ranks second among the most common types of malignant neoplasms in Russia. Radiation therapy, surgery, and combination therapy are commonly used for the treatment of skin cancer. Unfortunately, the above methods are not always successful. The reason for the incomplete effect of surgical treatment may be insufficient radicality of the intervention due to the surgeon's desire to inflict the least trauma on the surrounding healthy tissues in order to obtain a good cosmetic result. Selective destruction of tumor tissue during cryogenic exposure with minimal damage to surrounding healthy tissues is accompanied by a hemostatic effect, which is especially important in the treatment of both primary and recurrent disintegrating tumor ulcers. The aim was to determine the expediency of cryodestruction as a method of choice for outpatient treatment. The study was controlled and non-randomized. The criterion for inclusion in the study was the diagnosis of recurrent basal cell carcinoma and subsequent cryogenic treatment at the outpatient clinic of the State Budgetary Institution of the Rostov Region «Rostov Oncological Dispensary», Novocherkassk Branch. The patient underwent tumor cryodestruction in several freeze-thaw cycles, lasting 2–3 minutes. The result of this study, i.e. complete recovery, indicates high efficiency of cryodestruction. Subsequently, the patient did not experience continued growth or new relapses. In the presence of recurrent basal cell skin cancer, cryogenic exposure is effective and is the method of choice for treatment on an outpatient basis.