Skin cells lining a hair shaft or a pore David Njoku Womens Jersey , however, stay put and can allow the genetic damage to accumulate.


In North America, about one person in eight develops this precancerous condition of the skin at some point in life. The fairer the skin Jabrill Peppers Womens Jersey , the greater the risk of this particular kind of skin damage. People who have had Epstein-Barr virus are at greater risk, as are people who have had psoriasis treated with psoralen.


The good news about this condition is, it develops slowly. If you notice these subtle changes in your skin Myles Garrett Womens Jersey , you don’t have to run to the emergency room. It’s enough to ask your doctor about it at your annual or semiannual checkup, assuming you have not let the lesions go unchecked for a number of years. And in the meantime, you can slow the development of actinic pre-cancer with antioxidant therapies.


It would be safe to say that actinic keratosis is something that most people don’t even know what it is. But go ahead and breathe a sigh of relief even it you do have it.


How do you know if you have it? You may have it if you have been noticing a rough scaly patch of skin on your face or other sun exposed area. It’s simply sun damage. But it is a very slow-growing precancerous skin lesion. I had it for years and didn’t know what it was until I went to a free skin cancer screening several months ago.


There were three patches of skin on my face that I was a little concerned about. Two of them I couldn’t see at all. A very low yearly transformation rate for single lesions can translate into a substantial lifetime risk of transformation for patients with several actinic keratoses. Up to 60% of squamous cell carcinomas develop from actinic keratosis. Squamous cell carcinomas that evolve from actinic keratosis are not aggressive Baker Mayfield Womens Jersey , but may eventually metastasize. All patients with actinic keratosis should be examined carefully for basal cell carcinomas.


What about Actinic Keratosis treatment?


Because actinic keratoses sometimes undergo spontaneous remission, definitive treatment may be delayed for patients with a few superficial lesions. Small lesions should be reexamined at a later date for spontaneous remission. Patients should make every effort to prevent further sun damage. This does not mean that patients must hibernate for a lifetime, but they should understand techniques to reduce sunlight exposure.


Cryotherapy.


Cryotherapy is the treatment of choice for most isolated Antonio Callaway Womens Jersey , superficial, actinic keratoses. Actinic keratosis resides in the epithelium. Cryotherapy with liquid nitrogen causes the separation of the epidermis and dermis, resulting in a highly specific Chad Thomas Womens Jersey , nonscarring method of therapy for superficial lesions. Patients with darker complexions may develop hypopigmented areas after freezing, and treating multiple lesions on the faces of such patients may result in white-spotted faces. 5-FU is the best alternative.


Surgical removal.


Individual indurated lesions or those with thick crusts should be removed with minor surgical procedures. It is unnecessary to biopsy lesions less than 0.5 cm. Larger lesions or those occurring about or on the vermilion border of the lips should be examined. Electrodesiccation and curettage easily remove small, thicker lesions. The CO2 laser may be superior to vermilionectomy for actinic cheilitis too extensive to be treated with topical 5-FU.


An actinic keratosis Austin Corbett Womens Jersey , also identified as solar keratosis, enlarges little by little and normally causes no signs or signs or symptoms other than a patch or modest spot on your pores and skin. An actinic keratosis requires several years to create, typically 1st appearing in mature older people. Several doctors take into account an actinic keratosis to be precancerous due to the fact it can build into skin cancer.