Low-Dose 0.5% 5-Fluorouracil/10% Salicylic Acid Topical Solution in the Treatment of Actinic Keratoses

Abstract

Background: Actinic keratosis (AK) lesions have the potential to develop into invasive squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs), and approaches to treatment are evolving to try to reduce the burden of SCC. Objective: To present the published clinical research surrounding the use of 0.5% 5-fluorouracil with 10% salicylic acid (low-dose 5-FU/SA) for the treatment of hyperkeratotic AKs. Method: A review of published clinical evidence for low-dose 5-FU/SA for the treatment of AKs. The articles were selected following a MEDLINE database search of the combined terms fluorouracil, salicylic acid and actinic keratosis which represent the peer review publications of clinical studies that primarily investigate the use of Actikerall in AK. Results: Combining low-dose 5-FU with keratolytic SA is associated with high rates of histologic clearance, reduction in lesion number/area, and sustained clinical response in clinical study and the clinical practice setting. Low-dose 5-FU/SA has also been evaluated using imaging to detect the progression of subclinical AK lesions through a course of the field-directed treatment. Conclusion: Low-dose 5-FU/SA is an effective and well-tolerated treatment option licensed for the lesion-directed treatment of mild-to-moderate hyperkeratotic AK lesions.