Evaluation of effectiveness of cryotherapy on the treatment of cutaneous Kaposi's sarcoma
- Resource Type
- Authors
- Gürkan Yardimci; Murat Küçüktaş; Burhan Engin; Zekayi Kutlubay; Server Serdaroğlu
- Source
- Dermatologic surgery : official publication for American Society for Dermatologic Surgery [et al.]. 39(10)
- Subject
- Local pain
Adult
Male
medicine.medical_specialty
Skin Neoplasms
Nitrogen
Secondary infection
medicine.medical_treatment
Cryotherapy
Dermatology
Primary therapy
Young Adult
Blister
medicine
Humans
Kaposi's sarcoma
Sarcoma, Kaposi
Complete response
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
business.industry
General Medicine
Middle Aged
medicine.disease
Surgery
Vascular tumor
Female
Sarcoma
business
- Language
- ISSN
- 1524-4725
Objective Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) is a vascular tumor that affects the skin and other organs. Several therapeutic options are available, but the optimal therapy is unclear. The aim of this study was to determine the effectiveness and safety of cryotherapy in the treatment of KS. Materials and Methods Thirty patients were evaluated. Cryotherapy was applied using liquid nitrogen. Each treatment consisted of two freeze–thaw cycles, with freezing times ranging from 15 to 40 seconds per cycle. Results One hundred twenty-five lesions were treated in an average of 3.2 sessions. Complete response was observed in 19 (63%) of the 30 patients after cryotherapy treatment with no recurrence. The subjects tolerated cryotherapy well. Blistering occurred frequently, but local pain was limited. There were no secondary infections. Conclusion Liquid nitrogen cryotherapy is safe and cost-efficient and can be readily adopted as an effective primary therapy for cutaneous KS lesions that respond slowly or show incomplete cosmetic improvement after systemic therapies.