Minor cosmetic skin surgery and cryotherapy
We run a weekly clinic on Mondays and Fridays dealing with problem skin areas or the subcutaneous tissue (underneath skin area), including lipomas, cysts, moles, warts, tags and other lesions.
GP Skin specialist
Cryotherapy carried out same day
Quick availability for skin surgery
Available Bournemouth Clinic
Our skin specialist
Dr Jon Echebarrieta is our GP skin specialist and surgeon. If you have a lump or bump (skin lesion) that you would like removed for cosmetic reasons or it has become a nuisance to you, then there are two ways of removal.
Cryotherapy
Minor surgery
You will first be booked in for a 15-minute skin consultation with Dr Jon and he will confirm how he can treat the lesion. If he can use cryotherapy, then this will be carried out on the day and he will freeze as many problem areas as time permits and there is no additional cost. If Dr Jon confirms that your lesion requires minor surgery, then this will be booked in for a different date.
Skin Consultation appointment fee – £93
What is Cryotherapy?
Most problem skin areas (lesions) such as skin tags, types of mole, etc. can be treated with cryotherapy. This is where liquid nitrogen is applied to the area to freeze it. The area will form a scab a few days later and then the skin tag/mole will come away. There is very minimal scarring with cryotherapy compared to incision, but sometimes more than one treatment is required.
What can be treated with Cryotherapy?
Cryotherapy is carried out during the skin consultation appointment and costs £93.
Dr Jon will freeze as many problem areas as time permits and there is no additional cost.
Lesions which can generally be treated with cryotherapy are as follows:
Skin tags
Warts
Verrucas
Bowen's Disease
Actinic Kerotoses (Solar Keratoses)
Seborrheic Keratoses (Seborrheic Warts)
Certain types of mole (some moles can only be removed by minor surgery)
Basal Cell Carcinomas (BCCs) (sometimes these require minor surgery)
What is Minor surgery and what can be removed?
Sometimes Dr Echebarrieta will decide that a lump or bump (skin lesion) requires minor surgery. There are two types of minor surgery. One is called a Formal Excision and the other is a Shave Excision with or without Electrical /Chemical Cautery (Burning) of the skin. All minor surgery takes place in a special minor ops room at our clinic in Bournemouth and Dr Jon is assisted by a nurse.
What can be treated with Minor Surgery?
The types of lesion which generally require Minor Surgery is as follows:
Cysts (Sebaceous Cysts)
Lipomas
Certain types of Mole
Basal Cell Carcinomas (BCCs) (Sometimes these can be removed with cryotherapy)
Shave Excisions and Cautery
Certain types of mole can be removed by shave excision and cautery at their base. An anaesthetic is used before removal and stitches are not required. The surgery appointment is up to 30-minutes depending on how many lesions there are for removal.
20-minute – Shave Excision and Cautery surgery costs – £250
30-minute – Shave Excision and Cautery surgery costs – £350
Formal Excisions
Lipomas, cysts and some moles need removing with formal excision and this will require stitches and will leave some form of a scar. The stitches will be left in for a minimum of seven days and an appointment is arranged for one of our nurses to remove them. The cost of the stitch removal is included in the surgery price. Formal excision surgery appointments can be up to 60 minutes long depending on what the lesion is and how many there are.
40 minute formal excision surgery costs – £450
50 minute formal excision surgery costs – £500
60 minute formal excision surgery costs – £600
Further Important Information
Please note, if during the surgery process Dr Jon feels that the area needs further investigation, then he will refer you to a hospital based surgeon. Also, if he has removed a lesion and is concerned by the nature of it, then he may recommend it is sent off to a laboratory for further analysis. We can arrange for all of this to be carried out privately (there will be additional costs), or you are free to pursue the next steps within the NHS.
Sometimes at a skin consultation Dr Jon will confirm he cannot remove a lesion himself at our clinic and he will recommend a referral to a surgeon working at a hospital. If the lump or bump is in a delicate area, such as very close to the eye, then a referral to an ophthalmologist could be required. We can refer you to a private specialist. The cost of the referral letter is included in the skin consultation fee.
Dr Jon’s skin consultations and minor surgery at our Bournemouth clinic is extremely popular. Our clinic is close to the residents of Poole and Christchurch, but Dr Jon sees patients from all over Dorset and even further afield.