Patient‐reported outcomes of topical therapies in actinic keratosis : a systematic review

Patients' perspectives on actinic keratosis (AK) treatments may impact on treatment adherence and, therefore, clinical outcomes but are not well characterized. We performed a systematic review to assess patients' perspectives of topical, field-directed AK treatment. A literature search was performed, and 14 studies were identified encompassing 4433 patients. Only three studies focused on face and/or scalp, which are the locations that typically impact patients' quality of life. Four studies were clinical trials. One study utilized a patient-reported outcomes (PRO) instrument specifically developed for AK. In general, treatment adherence and patient satisfaction were better with shorter-duration treatments regimens such as ingenol mebutate gel. Imiquimod improved quality of life in one study but not in another. No data was available on topical piroxicam. The findings underscore the need for effective and well-tolerated, short-duration topical therapies for actinic keratosis.