Yes, a vet visit is in order. I can sympathize w/you b/c my RB Puddy stressed at the vet's, to the point where my vet didn't want her to spend the night at his clinic if at all possible b/c she'd carry on to the point where he was afraid she'd die. Sometimes, though, it was a necessity and she came through it ok. As others have suggested, perhaps your cat could be briefly sedated, rather than anesthetized, and your vet could quickly treat the cyst.

That being said, my RB Charmin (a dog) would develop cysts on her paws quite often. My late vet had me soak her paw in hot water and Epsom salts. It caused the cyst to open and drain. Then I'd clean it and wrap it so that she couldn't get at it. I don't know how well your cat would respond to holding her paw in hot water (not scalding, please) but maybe you could give that a whirl.

Let us know how you make out. Good luck. Oh, and btw, welcome to Pet Talk.