Actinic Keratoses
Prevention
Sun damage is permanent. Once sun damage has progressed to the point where actinic keratoses develop, new keratoses may appear even without further sun exposure. You should avoid excessive sun exposure—but don't go overboard and deprive yourself of the pleasure of being outdoors. Reasonable sun protection should be your goal.
Treating Actinic Keratoses
Actinic/Solar keratoses are pre-cancerous lesions and can be treated by freezing with liquid nitrogen. Freezing causes blistering and shedding of the sun-damaged skin. Healing is usually uneventful and takes 8-14 days on the face, 2-3 weeks on the arms and trunk, and up to one month on the legs. If something doesn’t heal, it might signify that it is actually a skin cancer and it should be shown to the physician. The physician may choose to biopsy the area to get an accurate microscopic diagnosis.
When there are many keratoses, a useful treatment is the application of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU). The medication is rubbed on the keratoses for 3-6 weeks. 5-FU destroys sun-damaged skin cells. After three to five days the treated area starts to get raw. At the conclusion of treatment, the skin is frequently still raw and complete healing may require another two weeks.
A newer treatment is Aldara cream, which sparks an immune response that then clears the actinic keratoses. Solareze gel is also used to suppress the development of new actinic keratoses. All of these treatments are more effective on the face than they are on the extremities and trunk.