Pre-Cancerous Skin Disease

Actinic keratosis, the most common pre-cancerous skin disease, shows up as a crusty or scaly lesion on the skin. Although it is usually benign, about 10 percent of these lesions eventually turn into skin cancer.

• Patient looking at the arm for signs of skin cancer.

Identification

• Actinic keratosis shows up on parts of the skin that are exposed to the sun, such as the head, neck and arms.

Features

• Most people notice this condition by feeling a rough or scaly spot on the skin. Later on, the lesion gets bigger and appears red in color.

Cause

• Excessive sun exposure causes actinic keratosis in nearly all cases. Since skin damage from the sun is cumulative, a brief period of exposure without sunscreen increases the chances of getting this pre-cancerous skin disease.

Solution

• All forms of this condition need to be treated because doctors have no way of knowing which lesions may become skin cancer.

Prevention

• Consistently wearing sunscreen while outdoors gives you the best chances of avoiding actinic keratosis and skin cancer. Other prevention steps include limiting sun exposure and not tanning.