Intralesional 5-fluorouracil induced high clearance rates in cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma

Treatment of cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC) primarily consists of surgical removal. The intralesional application of 5-fluorouracil might be a non-surgical alternative for select cases of cSCC, although currently no trial data exists.

Dr Emma Guttman-Yassky (Mount Sinai School of Medicine, USA) presented data from a reported retrospective single-centre analysis of 37 adults, which included a total of 195 cSCC tumours. The authors evaluated the efficacy of 5-fluorouracil in cSCC, including other patient and tumour characteristics, such as lesion, sex, and immunosuppression status [1].

Patients had a mean age of 70.5 years. The overall clearance rate was 87.2% (response in 170 tumours). Lesions of the extremities had a better percentage of clearance (arms 91%, legs 92%) than tumours on the face and neck (59%). Odds of treatment failure were higher in bigger tumours. Immunosuppressed patients had lower clearance rates (76%) compared with immunocompetent individuals (91%). According to the authors, the efficacy of this treatment should be assessed in a larger, prospective trial.

1. Hamad J et al. ePoster No. 8558, AAD Annual Meeting, 1-5 March 2019, Washington DC, USA.



Posted on 19 April 201925 March 2024