Successful Treatment of Actinic Keratosis with Kanuka Honey

Actinic keratoses form as rough, scaly plaques on sun-exposed areas; they can be an important step in premalignant progression to squamous cell cancer of the skin. Currently, pharmacological treatments consist of topical immunomodulatory agents with poor side effect profiles. Use of honey has been c...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Saras Mane, Joseph Singer, Andrew Corin, Alex Semprini
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2018-01-01
Series:Case Reports in Dermatological Medicine
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2018/4628971
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Actinic keratoses form as rough, scaly plaques on sun-exposed areas; they can be an important step in premalignant progression to squamous cell cancer of the skin. Currently, pharmacological treatments consist of topical immunomodulatory agents with poor side effect profiles. Use of honey has been common in both ancient and modern medicine, where it is now a key therapy in the management of wound healing. In vitro studies show the New Zealand native Kanuka honey to have immunomodulatory and antimitotic effects, with recent evidence suggesting efficacy of topical application in a variety of dermatological contexts, including rosacea and psoriasis. Here, we present a case report of a 66-year-old gentleman with an actinic keratosis on his hand, which had been present for years. Regular application of Kanuka honey over three months resulted in remission immediately following the treatment period with no signs of recurrence at nine months.
ISSN:2090-6463
2090-6471