Background:

basal cell carcinoma is the most frequent skin cancer. The treatment of choice is surgical, but there are other therapies. HeberFERON is a pharmaceutical formulation containing a mixture of interpheron alpha2b and IFN-Y in synergistic proportions of anti-tumor activity.

Objective:

to characterize patients with basal cell carcinoma treated with HeberFeron.

Methods:

a transversal, observational, descriptive study was carried out in which 22 patients were clinically and histologically diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma, who attended a Dermatology consultation at the University Hospital Manuel Ascunce Domenech, Camagüey, Cuba. 3.5 million IU of HeberFeron, was administered, near the lesion, three times a week on alternate days for three weeks, followed biweekly for 13 weeks, with final evaluation at week 16. The variables studied were: sex, skin photo-type, tumor site, size of lesions, clinical subtype, occupation, clinical response, cosmetic effect and adverse reactions. The information obtained was processed using the statistical package SPSS v21. The methods used were descriptive statistics with distribution of absolute and relative frequencies. The results were presented in tables and graphs.

Results:

male sex, cutaneous photo-type III, predominated in more than half of the patients. Face lesions predominated in more than four fifths of them, and almost two thirds measured less than two centimeters. The nodular clinical subtype prevailed in half of these, just like workers exposed to the sun. All had a favorable clinical response, with a complete response in two thirds, and partial in a third, as well as an acceptable cosmetic effect. Most presented chills as an adverse reaction, followed by fever.

Conclusions:

the HeberFERON was an effective and safe medicine to treat basal cell carcinoma, and offer an alternative in patients who cannot be operated on.

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