Actinic Keratosis Directory
Actinic keratosis is a precancerous skin growth. It appears as a dry, scaly, or crusty spot on the surface of the skin. An actinic keratosis can be as small as pinhead to a spot that is more than 1 inch wide. The spots vary in color from tan, pink, red, or skin-colored. Some are flat, others are raised. An actinic keratosis is more likely to appear on skin that is exposed to the sun, such as the face, ears, back of the neck, a bald head, hands, and arms. About 10% to 15% of actinic keratosis develop into squamous cell skin cancers. Follow the links below to find WebMD's comprehensive coverage about how actinic keratosis is contracted, what it looks like, how to treat it, and much more.
Medical Reference
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Actinic Keratosis Treatments
Learn about treatments for actinic keratosis from the experts at WebMD.
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Symptoms of Actinic Keratosis
WebMD's guide to the symptoms of actinic keratosis, a skin disorder caused by sun exposure.
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Moles, Freckles, Skin Tags, and More
Learn about moles, freckles, skin tags, seborrheic keratoses, and lentigines and their relationships to your skin. Find out what they look like and how they're treated.
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The Basics of Actinic Keratosis
Get the basics on actinic keratosis, a skin condition caused by too much sun exposure, from the experts at WebMD.
Slideshows & Images
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Slideshow: What Really Happens When You Get a Sunburn?
From sunburn to wrinkles to skin cancer, including melanoma, see how getting too much sun can take a toll on your skin.
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Slideshow: Precancerous Skin Lesions and Skin Cancer
Like many cancers, skin cancers -- including melanoma, basal cell carcinoma, and squamous cell carcinoma -- start as precancerous lesions. These precancerous lesions are changes in skin that are not cancer, but could become cancer over time. Learn to spot the early warning signs of skin cancer. It can be cured if it's found and treated early.
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Picture of Actinic Keratosis (Solar Keratosis)
Actinic keratoses are lesions on the outer skin layer caused by too much exposure to the ultraviolet rays of sunlight. They are also the beginnings of skin cancer, most often appearing after age 40.