Actinic keratoses are spots having rough colors that can be found on the surface of the skin. The sizes of these spots may vary from those that are of the size of a pin to those that are of the size of a coin. Having this condition may lead to having cancer if left untreated.
Those individuals who have light skin tones and are 40 year old or above are the ones who have the likelihood to suffer from actinic keratoses. This skin condition can also affect teenagers and not only adults. In order to keep away from having cancer cells developed, it is very important to have these spots removed off the skin. If you are going to ignore this skin condition, it is very likely that your health will perish. However, suffering from actinic keratosis does not automatically mean that you will develop cancer cells.
You might be asking about how to figure out if you have actinic keratosis. The way actinic keratosis appears in a person may not be the same with how it appears for another person. Because the spots are typically of the same color as that of the skin, actinic keratosis is not right away noticed. Its size being small can also influence the way it can be learned immediately.
One sign of having actinic keratosis is discoloration—the spots may vary from red to brown and even pink to gray. Also, when it comes to its texture, it is noticeable rough. The scalp of bald individuals, nose, lips, ears, arms, and the back of the hand are the usual target of actinic keratosis since these are the areas that are overly exposed to the sun. Its growth is considerably slow and it can give you the idea that it is already vanished only to reappear at the very same part of the skin later on. It has to be noted that actinic keratosis entails bleeding and itchiness.
The appearance of actinic keratosis may be the effect of overexposure to the sun for the past few years. The skin’s outermost layer may be damaged due to overexposure to the sun as apparent with its scaly appearance. Not only will the skin be rough, there will also be noticeable spots.