Successful treatment of actinic keratosis with imiquimod cream 5%: a report of six cases

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Abstract
Background Actinic keratoses (AK) are premalignant lesions, which are routinely treated by destructive procedures such as cryotherapy, electrodessication or topical 5‐fluorouracil. Objectives The aim of this study is to report six cases of AK treated with a potential new topical therapy, imiquimod. Methods Subjects included in this study had suffered with recurrent AK for between 5 and 16 years. All six men were treated with imiquimod 5% cream three times a week for 6–8 weeks. In the event of a local skin reaction treatment was modified to two times per week. Results All the AK lesions were successfully cleared after treatment with imiquimod cream 5% for 6–8 weeks. Histologically, no apparent signs of persisting AK could be detected, and no recurrences were reported during follow up. Conclusions This study suggests that imiquimod may be useful as a new therapy for the treatment of actinic keratoses.