Concierge dermatology · UK
Photodynamic therapy (PDT) - whole fields of sun damage, cleared without a scalpel.
For actinic keratoses, Bowen’s disease and superficial basal cell carcinoma, PDT treats an entire area of sun-damaged skin in one sitting - dermatoscopic assessment and biopsy first, daylight or red-lamp protocol chosen for your skin, and healing that usually leaves no mark.
Why patients choose us
- 01
Dermatoscopy and histology before any lamp
A consultant dermatologist examines every lesion with a dermatoscope - and biopsies anything ambiguous - before committing your skin to a field treatment.
- 02
Daylight or conventional, chosen for you
Daylight PDT is dramatically more comfortable for scalp and facial sun damage; conventional red-lamp PDT gives more punch for Bowen’s and superficial BCC. We book the version your skin actually needs.
- 03
Independent, and free
We take nothing from any skin clinic, so if your lesion belongs under a scalpel or a Mohs surgeon rather than a lamp, that is exactly what we will tell you.
Indicative pricing
What private skin PDT costs in the UK.
Indicative ranges across our partner dermatology clinics. Send photos and the story, and we quote firm figures across two or three options, with cover checked.
In short
A two-session course in our network: £800–£1,600, home the same day, both visits.
| Procedure | Indicative range | Typical duration | Stay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Consultant dermatology consultation only | £200–£350 | 20–30 min | Same visit |
| Diagnostic skin biopsy with histology | £300–£500 | 20–30 min | Results 1–2 wks |
| Conventional red-lamp PDT - per session, per field | £450–£900 | 3–4 hrs incl. incubation | Home same day |
| Daylight PDT - per session | £350–£700 | c. 2.5 hrs | Home same day |
| Two-session PDT package (Bowen’s / superficial BCC) | £800–£1,600 | 2 visits, 1–4 wks apart | Home same day |
| Additional field treated at the same visit | £250–£500 | Added to session | Home same day |
The main cost drivers are the number and size of the fields, whether histology is needed first, and how many sessions your diagnosis requires - a single daylight field for keratoses sits at the bottom of the range, a two-session lamp course over several fields at the top. We come back with a firm quote within one working day.
The problem
Sun damage is a field problem - treating it patch by patch loses the race.
Years of freezing individual keratoses while the surrounding skin quietly grows new ones. Field PDT treats the whole area at once - but only after the dangerous lesions have been ruled out.
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Rule out the invaders first
Every field hides the occasional lesion that has already gone deep. Dermatoscopy and biopsy find it before the lamp goes anywhere near it.
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Pick the protocol, not just the treatment
Daylight for comfort on big facial and scalp fields; the red lamp, twice, for Bowen’s and superficial BCC. Getting this choice right is half the outcome.
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Protect the result afterwards
Cleared fields stay clear only with serious sun protection and surveillance. The plan you leave with matters as much as the session itself.
The journey
From photos to clear skin - what happens, in order.
One dermatology team from first message through assessment, illumination, healing and the three-month check.
Phase 1 · Before your treatment
Dermatoscopy, biopsy, field preparation
Phase 2 · On the day
Lamp or daylight, then home
Phase 3 · After
Healing, session two, review
- 01
Before
You send photos and the story
A short, confidential form: where the rough patches or lesions are, how long they have been there, any previous skin cancers, and close-up photographs if you can manage them.
- 02
Before
We book the right dermatologist
Within one working day: a consultant with a regular PDT list, a view on daylight versus conventional treatment, and an indicative price for the fields involved.
- 03
Before
Dermatoscopic assessment ± biopsy
Every lesion is examined under the dermatoscope. Anything thickened, tender or atypical is biopsied first - Bowen’s and superficial BCC are usually confirmed on histology before treatment.
- 04
Before
The field is mapped and prepared
Scale and crust are gently removed, the treatment field is marked out, and the MAL or 5-ALA cream is applied - under an occlusive dressing for conventional PDT, with sunscreen first for daylight PDT.
- 05
On the day
Illumination - lamp or daylight
Conventional: about three hours of incubation, then 8–10 minutes under the red LED lamp with cooling and pauses on demand. Daylight: straight outside for two hours of ordinary daylight, rain jackets permitting.
- 06
On the day
Dressing on, light precautions home
The field is covered and you head home the same day. Keep the area shielded from bright light and sunshine for 48 hours; expect it to redden and feel sunburnt that evening.
- 07
After
Crusting, healing and the second session
The field weeps, crusts and heals over 7–14 days. Bowen’s and superficial BCC usually get a second session 1–4 weeks later; the response check follows at three months.
Typical end-to-end: 2–3 weeks from enquiry to first session. Each treated field heals in 7–14 days; final response is judged at three months.
When it helps
When skin PDT is the right step.
The patterns of sun damage we arrange PDT for most, plus the one red flag that belongs with a surgeon, not a lamp.
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Widespread AKs on a bald scalp
The classic PDT patient - dozens of rough patches across years of sun exposure, impossible to freeze one by one.
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Sun damage across the face and temples
Field cancerisation of the forehead, cheeks and temples, where cosmetic outcome matters most.
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Bowen’s disease on the lower leg
A slowly enlarging scaly plaque of SCC in situ - a site where surgical wounds heal poorly, and PDT shines.
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Superficial BCC on the trunk or shoulders
Biopsy-proven thin BCC where excision would trade a small pink patch for a permanent scar.
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AKs recurring after creams or freezing
Fields that keep sprouting new keratoses despite fluorouracil, imiquimod or repeated cryotherapy.
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When the cosmetic result is the priority
Visible sites - nose, cheeks, décolletage - where PDT’s scar-free healing beats surgery for suitable superficial lesions.
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Transplant and immunosuppressed patients
Organ-transplant recipients develop keratoses at pace; regular field PDT is a recognised way to keep ahead of them.
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Red flag: a keratosis turning into a lump
An AK or plaque that thickens, hurts, ulcerates or bleeds may be invasive squamous cell carcinoma - that needs urgent excision with histology, never a lamp.
Treatment options
Daylight or lamp, one field or many - the protocol follows the diagnosis.
What each option involves - light source (red LED lamp or ambient daylight), extent (single lesion or whole field), sessions (one, two, or maintenance) and where PDT simply does not belong.
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Conventional red-lamp PDT
MAL cream under occlusion for three hours, then a calibrated 630 nm LED array for 8–10 minutes. The evidence-based standard for Bowen’s disease and superficial BCC.
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Daylight PDT
MAL cream, then two hours outdoors within half an hour of application. Almost painless and ideal for extensive facial and scalp AKs - though it needs daylight above a minimum level, so in the UK it is largely an April-to-September treatment.
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Single-lesion PDT
One confirmed patch of Bowen’s or one superficial BCC, treated with a focused field and a planned second session.
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Large-field and multi-field PDT
Whole scalp, both temples or several trunk fields at one visit - the efficient answer to widespread field cancerisation.
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Two-session protocols
For Bowen’s and superficial BCC, two treatments 1–4 weeks apart clear roughly 80–90 percent of lesions - a single session is usually reserved for thin AK fields.
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PDT with pain control
Cold-air blowers, water sprays, scheduled breaks and nerve-block or infiltrated local anaesthetic for sensitive sites like the scalp and forehead.
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Maintenance and repeat cycles
Sun-damaged skin keeps making keratoses. Annual or as-needed repeat fields are common, particularly for transplant patients.
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What PDT is not for
Invasive SCC, nodular, morphoeic or recurrent BCC, and anything pigmented. Those lesions go to excision or Mohs - depth beats light every time.
Our vetted UK network
A small panel of dermatologists, we picked them.
Consultant dermatologists with dedicated PDT lists across London and the major UK cities. Introductions are made privately, once we have seen your photographs and history.
Selection criteria
How we choose every dermatologist in our network.
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Consultant dermatologists running dedicated, regular PDT lists - with both lamp and daylight protocols on offer
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Dermatoscopy at every assessment and same-site biopsy with formal histology before treating Bowen’s or BCC
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Proper pain management available for conventional PDT - cooling, breaks and local anaesthetic, not gritted teeth
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A direct line to skin cancer surgery and Mohs services for any lesion that turns out to need more than light
Safety and recovery
What to expect afterwards - honestly.
Skin PDT trades a rough fortnight of sunburn-like healing for high clearance rates and a near-invisible result. The honest conversation is about pain during the lamp - and about the lesions PDT should never touch.
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The lamp can genuinely hurt
Conventional PDT on the scalp or face stings and burns during those 8–10 minutes - some patients rate it highly painful. Insist on a clinic that offers cooling, pauses and anaesthetic rather than pushing through.
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Daylight PDT sidesteps most of the pain
Because the photosensitiser is activated gradually over two hours, discomfort is usually mild tingling. For facial and scalp AK fields it has become the kinder first choice.
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A sunburn-like reaction is expected
Redness, swelling, weeping and crusting over the treated field for a week or two is the treatment working, not a complication. Simple emollients and cool compresses are enough for most people.
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48 hours of light avoidance
Residual cream keeps the skin photosensitive for about two days. Hats, dressings and staying out of bright sun and strong indoor light until it wears off.
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Infection, blistering and pigment change are uncommon
Occasional blistering, rare infection, and temporary lightening or darkening of the treated skin can occur; lasting scarring is genuinely unusual.
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Cure rates you can plan around
Around 80–90 percent clearance for superficial BCC and Bowen’s with the two-session protocol, and high field-clearance rates for AKs - with follow-up to catch and retreat the minority that persist.
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Cosmesis is where PDT wins
Healed fields typically look like normal skin. Compared with multiple excisions across a sun-damaged face or scalp, the cosmetic argument is often decisive.
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Some skin should never be lamp-treated
Invasive or high-risk tumours, pigmented lesions, porphyria and known photosensitivity disorders all rule PDT out. The assessment exists precisely to catch these.
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Red flags after treatment
Spreading redness beyond the field, pus, fever, severe unremitting pain, or a treated lesion that regrows within weeks - call the clinic the same day rather than waiting for review.
Reading your clinic letter
Your clinic letter in four parts. Read the last one first.
Whether you had daylight or lamp treatment, one field or four, the letter your dermatologist writes keeps to the same shape.
A quiet reminder
Terms like field cancerisation and carcinoma in situ sound worse than they are - we translate them for you.
If you would like us to walk through the letter and the histology before your three-month check, just ask.
- 01 Header
Diagnosis, fields and prior histology
What was treated - AK field, Bowen’s or superficial BCC - the exact sites marked out, and the biopsy result that justified field treatment in the first place.
- 02 Technique
Cream, incubation and illumination
MAL or 5-ALA, occlusion time, and whether the field had conventional lamp illumination (with the light dose) or two hours of daylight - plus any anaesthetic used.
- 03 Findings
Skin reaction and early response
How briskly the field reacted, how healing progressed, and - at the three-month check - which lesions have cleared and which need retreating or a different approach.
- 04 Impression
Second session, surveillance and sun advice
Read this first: whether session two is booked, when the response check falls, and the sun-protection plan that stops the next crop of keratoses forming.
Recognised by major UK insurers
PDT for biopsy-confirmed Bowen’s disease and superficial BCC is generally covered as skin cancer treatment. Cover for actinic keratosis fields varies by policy - some insurers class it as preventative. We confirm your position before booking.
Frequently asked
Everything we get asked about skin PDT.
Quick answers on daylight versus lamp, sessions, cure rates, pain, cost and the NHS route.
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What is PDT for skin, in plain terms?
A prescription cream (MAL or 5-ALA) is applied to the sun-damaged area, where abnormal cells absorb it far more avidly than healthy ones. A few hours later the area is exposed to red light or daylight, which activates the cream and selectively destroys those abnormal cells. The field then peels and heals, usually without a scar.
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Which skin problems is it used for?
Three main ones: actinic (solar) keratoses - the rough, scaly patches on bald scalps, faces and hands; Bowen’s disease, which is squamous cell carcinoma confined to the top layer of skin; and superficial basal cell carcinoma. Its particular strength is field cancerisation - treating a whole area of sun damage in one go instead of dozens of separate excisions or freezes.
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What is the difference between daylight and conventional PDT?
Conventional PDT incubates the cream under a dressing for about three hours and then activates it intensely with a red lamp for 8–10 minutes - effective, but it can be painful. Daylight PDT sends you outdoors for two hours shortly after the cream goes on, activating it slowly and almost painlessly. Daylight suits widespread facial and scalp keratoses; the lamp is preferred for Bowen’s and superficial BCC, and for the British winter.
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How many sessions will I need?
Thin actinic keratosis fields often clear with a single session, repeated later only if new patches appear. Bowen’s disease and superficial BCC are normally treated with two sessions one to four weeks apart, then checked at around three months. Heavily sun-damaged skin may need maintenance fields every year or so.
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Does it work - and what does the skin look like afterwards?
With the standard two-session protocol, roughly 80–90 percent of superficial BCCs and Bowen’s patches clear, and field treatment of keratoses achieves high clearance too. The treated area behaves like a patch of sunburn - red, weepy, crusted - for one to two weeks, then typically heals looking like normal skin, which is why PDT is favoured on the face and lower legs.
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When is PDT the wrong treatment?
Whenever the problem goes deeper than light can reach. Invasive squamous cell carcinoma, nodular, morphoeic, recurrent or otherwise high-risk basal cell carcinoma, and any pigmented lesion all need excision - or Mohs micrographic surgery on high-risk facial sites. That is why the dermatoscopic assessment and biopsy come before the lamp, never after.
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What does private skin PDT cost in the UK?
A consultant dermatology consultation is £200–£350 and a diagnostic biopsy £300–£500. Conventional PDT runs £450–£900 per session per field, daylight PDT £350–£700 per session, and a two-session package for Bowen’s or superficial BCC £800–£1,600. Extra fields treated at the same visit cost less than standalone sessions. We confirm exact figures within one working day.
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Is skin PDT available on the NHS?
Yes - many NHS dermatology departments run PDT clinics for actinic keratoses, Bowen’s disease and superficial BCC, and it is an established, guideline-supported treatment. Access depends on your local service having the kit and the list, and routine dermatology waits apply, which for non-urgent field treatment can be many months. Private treatment mainly buys assessment within days and a scheduled treatment date.
Related treatments
Looking for something else?
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Photodynamic therapy - all uses
PDT across skin, oesophagus, airway and eye.
Learn more -
Mohs micrographic surgery
For high-risk and facial basal cell carcinoma.
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Skin cancer excision
When a lesion needs cutting out, not light.
Learn more -
Cryotherapy
Freezing for a handful of isolated keratoses.
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Mole and skin lesion checks
Full-skin dermatoscopic surveillance.
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All tests & procedures
Every test and procedure we arrange.
Learn more