Actinic keratosis can be described as the small or rough spot appearing on the skin as a result of chronic exposure to the sun. The condition of actinic keratoses, which is associated with solar damage precedes skin malignancy or cancer.

Actinic keratosis can be commonly seen in people having fair skin as a result of frequent exposure to the sun. Such people are vulnerable to this condition because of having less protective pigment. The overexposure to sun leads to development of wrinkles and red patches and discoloration of their skin.

Actinic keratoses with the size ranging between 2 and 6 millimeters in diameter are generally reddish in color with the top covered by white scale. They can also be seen in some other colors such as dark, light, tan or pink. In some cases they are seen having a combination of all those colors.

The frequent and constant exposure to sun leads to the formation of thick and scaly bumps on the skin. This dry and rough bump initially grows as flat scaly areas, but soon turns into tough and warty area. Actinic keratoses can be very painful especially when it is rubbed against fingers or clothing.

Areas typically affected by actinic keratoses

The locations such as face, scalp, ears, back of the neck, lips, forearms, upper chest and back of the hands are mostly affected by actinic keratosis because they are frequently under exposure to sun. The top of the ears in men is more likely to be affected by actinic keratoses whereas in many women this particular area is protected by their hairstyles.

Importance of actinic keratosis

Actinic keratosis, which is also known as solar keratosis, is considered as pre cancerous lesion on the skin in forms of thick and scaly patches. Such pre malignant patches on the skin often turn into squamous cell carcinoma and therefore they should be treated as soon as they are seen on the skin. However, only few cases are seen to be reaching at the malignant stage as this process takes several years.

Persons showing symptoms of actinic keratosis at the time of diagnosis often say that they hardly venture out under the sun. Their statement may be true because actinic keratosis does not appear all of a sudden, rather it takes several years or even decades for it to develop. Such cases may have been the result of the predisposing sun exposure several years back. Actinic keratosis does not generally appear after sun exposure of a short time.

Diagnosis of actinic keratosis

Often the doctors find it easy to diagnose actinic keratosis merely by examining it. However, large or thick actinic keratosis may necessitate biopsy to confirm whether the spot of keratosis nature has turned into a skin cancer or not.

Other such spots, which are known as seborrheic keratoses do not come up as a result of exposure to sun and they are no way related to skin cancers. Such raised brown spots or lesions are not confined to the areas that are exposed to the sun, rather they are also found to be running in families.

Treatment of actinic keratosis

Prevention of actinic keratosis can be the best treatment. People with light skin must minimize their exposure to sun. However, it can be treated through simple methods:

Cryosurgery: Actinic keratosis may be cast off with the use of liquid nitrogen. Liquid nitrogen freezes actinic keratosis causing it to go away.

Other forms of surgery: Sometimes the actinic keratosis may be cut away or burn off.

5-fluorouracil: The creams comprising 5-fluorouracil turns actinic keratosis red and inflamed, resulting in its fall off. Howsoever effective this method can be, it turns the skin uncomfortable and unpleasant to look at for next few weeks.

Photodynamic therapy: Photodynamic therapy, also known as photo radiation therapy, is employed mainly to destroy cancerous cells with the use of a light source and a photosensitizing chemical. It is considered to be an effective treatment method for the patients with actinic keratoses. It has become popular because of its good safety profile. The photosensitizing drug that is injected into the bloodstream brings together actinic keratosis patches or bumps. In this process the patches or bumps become sensitive to exposure to a special form of light. This is one of the useful actinic keratoses treatment.

What to do after treatment?

Patients with actinic keratoses are often advised to annually visit doctor to undergo check up. Regular checkup is necessary to know if new lesions are appearing on the skin or old ones are turning malignant.

It is also advisable for the patients to avoid frequent exposure to sun so as to minimize the chances of recurrences of actinic keratosis.