West Midlands nurse Ezinne Igboke successfully removed ten painful neck skin tags in 15 minutes using a £100 electrocautery procedure after her NHS doctor turned her away.
The 35-year-old healthcare worker had sought medical help last autumn for the nodules, commonly known as skin tags, which had developed across her neck since she hit her 30s. The growths created a constant daily nuisance as jewellery, clothing collars and seatbelts caught and pulled on her skin, leaving the area sore, red and angry.
When Ms Igboke consulted her NHS general practitioner, the doctor concluded that she would just have to live with the condition. Because the National Health Service considers skin tag removal to be cosmetic and medically unnecessary, patients are routinely refused state-funded treatment.
"It was uncomfortable but, the worst part was, it looked unsightly," said Ms Igboke. Desperate for relief, she initially attempted at-home remedies involving tiny plastic bands designed to cut off blood supply to the growths. Doctors strongly discourage such DIY treatments due to serious risks of infection, severe bleeding and permanent scarring.
Since December, Ms Igboke has been entirely skin tag free after undergoing electrocautery at Skin Blemish Studio in Birmingham. The procedure destroys skin tags by burning them with a specialized probe heated by an electric current, allowing clinicians to clear multiple growths in a single 15-minute appointment.
"Within seven days, all of them had gone," Ms Igboke said, describing the sensation as feeling like a series of small stings. "It wasn't comfortable, but it was tolerable."
Unlike some alternative cosmetic treatments that carry a risk of altering the quality or texture of surrounding skin, particularly in patients with darker skin tones, electrocautery left no visible marks. "My neck is completely clear. It's like nothing has ever been there," she added.
The successful procedure provided an immediate boost to her self-esteem. "Finally I could wear dresses with necklaces again, and I felt like myself," Ms Igboke said. "I can't believe I spent so long living with something so uncomfortable, when there was a super quick solution all along."
Understanding Skin Tags and NHS Restrictions
Skin tags, known medically as acrochordons, represent one of the most widespread cosmetic skin complaints in the United Kingdom. Approximately 60 per cent of Britons develop the benign growths, which consist primarily of loose collagen fibers and blood vessels covered by normal skin. While most commonly found on the neck, they also frequently appear on the groin, inner thighs, under the breasts and on the eyelids, with likelihood of development increasing after age 50.
Although medical experts do not fully understand all causes of skin tags, skin-on-skin chafing and friction are major contributing factors, making them common among individuals living with obesity. The growths are also closely associated with type 2 diabetes, often serving as an early physical indicator of the condition. Elevated insulin levels circulating in the bloodstream stimulate skin cell proliferation, accelerating skin tag growth.
Despite their high prevalence, patients seeking treatment through the NHS face strict limitations. Health service guidelines classify skin tag removal as cosmetic surgery, meaning treatment is funded only when growths bleed regularly or grow large enough to obstruct vision. For the vast majority of sufferers, private healthcare remains the only option, with traditional dermatologist consultations costing several hundred pounds per skin tag.
Comparing Removal Methods and Costs
Standard private removal methods carry distinct drawbacks and financial costs. Surgical excision using sterile scissors is expensive and carries risks of bleeding, scarring and infection. Liquid nitrogen cryotherapy, which freezes the growth off using a spray or specialized probe, lacks precision. The pen-sized cryotherapy probe can damage surrounding healthy tissue, alter skin pigmentation, and require multiple follow-up sessions to completely destroy the lesion.
Advocates highlight electrocautery as a far more accessible alternative, costing approximately £70 to remove a single skin tag and between £100 and £120 for multiple growths. The procedure can be performed by qualified specialist nurses, making it cheaper and more widely available than traditional dermatologist consultations.
Monicha Mignott, a specialist nurse and electrolysist based in Birmingham who performs electrocautery at Skin Blemish Studio, explained that the technique relies on a miniscule heated needle to burn off the growth while simultaneously cauterizing nearby blood vessels. This immediate sealing action minimizes bleeding and promotes rapid healing.
"The needle used is very small, which allows us to be precise and reduces the risk of harm to surrounding tissue," said Ms Mignott. She noted that while cryotherapy probes are roughly the size of a pen, electrocautery needles have a tiny circumference that targets only the growth itself.
Depending on the physical size of the lesion, clinicians either sever it immediately at its base or pierce its core. "If you send heat down the middle of the growth it shrivels like a raisin and then falls off within two weeks," Ms Mignott explained, adding that she applies a soothing ointment at the end of the 15-minute treatment. Scarring is extremely rare, and full removal is typically achieved in one session.
Pain Management and Clinical Safety
Because electrocautery relies on direct thermal energy, patients experience varying levels of discomfort, particularly when practitioners lack authority to prescribe numbing agents. "You have to be a nurse qualified to prescribe medication to be able to offer numbing cream, and not every clinician who performs this treatment is," Ms Mignott said.
Pain perceptions vary widely among clients during the treatment session. "But some of my patients find it completely pain-free; I have some who fall asleep halfway through," Ms Mignott stated. "Others, however, might score the pain at around a five out of ten." To minimize discomfort, she recommends that patients purchase Emla cream, an over-the-counter topical anesthetic available at high street pharmacies, and apply it prior to their appointment.
Clinical evidence supports the effectiveness of electrocautery over freezing methods. In 2024, dermatologists at the Iran University of Medical Sciences conducted a study evaluating 24 patients and doctors comparing electrocautery and cryotherapy for skin tag removal. Following a three-month evaluation period, both patients and medical professionals expressed significantly higher satisfaction with electrocautery outcomes.
Medical experts emphasize that a thorough clinical examination before treatment is essential, as malignant skin lesions can easily be mistaken for benign skin tags. Growths that display rapid growth, unusual coloration, bleeding or persistent pain require immediate medical evaluation rather than cosmetic removal.
"Usually there are characteristic signs of this particular skin problem," Ms Mignott explained. "If a skin tag doesn't look like a skin tag, I'll tell clients to go to their GP to get it checked out, or I'll take pictures with a special camera and send them to a dermatologist."
Recommending Treatment to Others
Following her successful treatment, Ms Igboke has spent the past six months actively recommending electrocautery to colleagues and acquaintances who suffer from similar skin issues.
"I have quite a few colleagues who struggle with skin tags and I've told them to go and get this done ASAP," she said. "I was surprised that a nurse doing cosmetic treatments would be more knowledgeable about this than a GP, but I'm glad I found her."
Reflecting on her experience, she added that the private consultation provided both cosmetic relief and personal validation: "Not only was I very happy with the results, but it felt good to be listened to."
