Cryosurgical treatment of lentigo maligna.
BACKGROUND
Lentigo maligna (LM) is a common melanocytic malignancy which requires therapy because of the risk of progression to invasive lentigo maligna melanoma which a much worse prognosis.


METHODS
18 patients with clinical and histopathological diagnosis of LM were treated with cryosurgery. The patients were older Caucasians (mean age 59.5 years) and 11 were male. They were chosen for cryosurgery because the lesion posed a surgical challenge or the patient was not a good surgical candidate. They were treated with two freeze-thaw cycles of liquid nitrogen under local anesthesia in a single sitting. Lesions larger than 2 cm(2) were divided into smaller segments for freezing.


RESULTS
The lesions resolved clinically in all cases, with no recurrence or metastasis detected during a mean follow-up of 75.5 months. Some patients developed hypopigmented scars.


CONCLUSIONS
Cryosurgery with liquid nitrogen is an efficient, safe and in most cases aesthetically acceptable alternative method to treat LM.
de Moraes
Aparecida Machado
AM
Department of Dermatology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Universidade Estadual de Campinas [UNICAMP], Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil. amoraes@fcm.unicamp.br
Pavarin
Lilian Bianchi
LB
Herreros
Fernanda
F
de Aguiar Michelman
Fábia
F
Velho
Paulo Eduardo Neves Ferreira
PE
de Souza
Elemir Macedo
EM
D003452:Cryosurgery / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D018327:Hutchinson's Melanotic Freckle / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / Q000473:pathology* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery*; D016896:Treatment Outcome