Pre-Cancerous Conditions
Solar keratoses
Solar keratoses (actinic keratoses) are scaly areas of the skin resulting from excessive cumulative sun exposure i.e. sun exposure during a lifetime.
If left alone, they may progress to a skin cancer called Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC).
Options of treatment of solar keratoses include:
Aldara cream
Efudix cream
Photodynamic therapy (PDT) – ideal if there are many solar keratoses within an area. The face, arms and scalp (if devoid of hair) are the most common areas to be involved with multiple solar keratoses and hence the most common areas to require PDT.
Bowen's disease
Bowens disease is a squamous cell carcinoma in situ (confined to the epidermis) and progresses to an invasive squamous cell carcinoma in 3-5% of cases. Diagnosis is confirmed on biopsy of the involved area of skin.
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