Solar Keratosis Hampshire UK

 

• Solar Keratoses are red, scaly marks that appear on the scalp, face, ears, chest, backs of the hands and lower legs.

• Although most solar keratoses cause little trouble, they can develop into fatal skin cancers

• At the Wessex Skin Clinic, you will be treated by Dr Geoffrey Fairris who is one of the UK's leading Consultant Dermatologists. He has successfully treated thousands of solar keratoses over the last two decades, leaving excellent cosmetic results.

 

What causes Solar Keratoses?

They are caused by the cumulative effects of ultraviolet light on the DNA in skin cells and so most commonly occur in fair skinned people at sites of highest sun exposure.

 

What is a Solar Keratosis?

An area of skin that has been so badly damaged by many years of sun exposure that is no longer able to shed its dead skin cells. The cells accumulate as a visible yellow scale on the surface of the skin.

Solar keratoses are also known as actinic keratoses

 

What will happen to a Solar Keratosis?

  • A few will heal spontaneously over two years
  • A small number will become a nuisance by forming a raised "horn" of skin
  • A few will turn into a potentially fatal skin cancer called a squamous cell carcinoma

As a solar keratosis turns into a skin cancer, it will usually start to thicken, weep or bleed. It must now be removed surgically within a few weeks. If this happens on the lips or ear, one must take the warning particularly seriously and act early.

 

How are Solar Keratoses treated?

Any solar keratoses on the ears or lips should be treated, as skin cancers arising at those sites tend to spread. Otherwise, treatment is ideal but not a necessity.

 

How are Solar Keratoses prevented?

Wearing a sunscreen will help. Two ml of sunscreen with SPF 20 and *** to **** UVA protection should be applied to the face every morning.

A hat protects the scalp and forehead only.