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Background: Basal cell carcinomas (BCCs) have previously been treated off-label with ingenol mebutate (IM). Ablative fractional laser (AFL) may improve efficacy of IM by increasing drug uptake in the tumour. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) and reflectance confocal microscopy (RCM) detect BCC non-invasively. Our aim was to investigate BCC response and tolerability after combined AFL and IM treatment of low-risk BCCs., Methods: Twenty patients with histologically verified superficial (n = 7) and nodular (n = 13) BCCs were treated with combined fractional CO 2 -laser (10 600 nm) and IM 0.015% or 0.05%, the concentration depending on anatomical location. BCC response was evaluated clinically, by OCT and RCM at day 29 and 90 after first treatment, and histologically at day 90. Treatment was repeated at day 29 if BCC persisted. Local skin reactions (LSRs) were assessed using LSR scale at all visits., Results: At day 29, 18/20 patients received a second treatment due to residual BCC detected clinically, by OCT or RCM. OCT and RCM presented subclinical BCCs in five of 20 cases (25%). At day 90, overall histological cure rate was 70%, corresponding to clinical (65%) and OCT/RCM (60%) cure rates, and agreement between evaluation methods was substantial (kappa ≥ 0.796, P < 0.0001). Clearance rates were similar for sBCCs and nBCCs (P = 0.354) and for lesions treated with IM 0.015% and 0.05% (P = 0.141). LSRs were tolerable, but scarring was observed in the majority of cleared patients., Conclusion: Two treatments of combined AFL and IM show potential to treat low-risk BCCs with acceptable tolerability. OCT and RCM show promise to detect subclinical BCCs at short-term follow-up., (© 2019 European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology.)

Purpose: To explore the application of optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging of basal cell carcinomas (BCC) and actinic keratosis (AK) before, during and after imiquimod treatment and the ability of OCT to predict treatment outcome., Methods: The study subjects were 20 patients with biopsy-verified BCC (9) or AK (11). Patients were OCT-scanned before, after 1 and 4 weeks of imiquimod treatment and after 3 months. Lesions were identified clinically and with OCT. Thickness and morphology of the lesions were recorded at each visit. Any remaining lesions were biopsied at follow-up., Results: Complete data sets were available for 16 patients (8 women and 8 men aged 52-82 years), four in-compliant patients were excluded. OCT identified all lesions. Previously suggested OCT-criteria identified 5/8 BCCs. Crusting, ulceration and active treatment significantly reduced image quality. All BCCs cleared, but at follow-up residual structures were seen clinically in 4 cases. OCT and histology both ruled out residual BCC. For AKs significant thinning occurred after 1 week of treatment (P = 0.04). Imiquimod cleared 2/8 AKs, and significantly decreased the thickness of all lesions (P = 0.02)., Conclusions: OCT could identify superficial BCC and AK before treatment. Monitoring during imiquimod treatment revealed impaired image quality most likely caused by inflammation, crusting and ulceration. On follow-up, OCT showed thinning of AKs indicating effect of treatment. All treated BCCs cleared, but where residual tissue was suspected clinically this could be ruled out by OCT., (© 2013 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Background: Photodynamic therapy with methyl aminolaevulinate (MAL-PDT) is a widely used non-invasive treatment modality for non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC). The outcome of MAL-PDT is usually primarily evaluated clinically. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a non-invasive imaging technology based on interferiometry. OCT has been proven to provide high accuracy in identifying NMSC lesions and performing thickness measurements of thin tumours., Objectives: To describe the OCT morphology in in-vivo NMSC lesions during MAL-PDT treatment and to investigate the use of OCT in evaluating the response of MAL-PDT treated NMSC lesions., Methods: A total of 18 biopsy-proven basal cell carcinomas and actinic keratoses were monitored by OCT during 2 sessions of MAL-PDT treatment. At 3-months follow-up the patients were assessed both by OCT and clinically. If the clinical and OCT evaluation came to different conclusions on recurrence of the lesion, patients were followed more closely at clinical appointments for up to one year after the PDT treatment., Results: All lesions displayed at least one OCT characteristic before MAL-PDT treatment. At 3 months follow-up, recurrence was suspected clinically in 5/18 cases, with OCT in 7/18 cases. OCT correctly identified all of the partial responses also found by the clinical examinations. In both cases where recurrence was only found in OCT, this was subsequently confirmed by histology., Conclusions: Our study suggests that OCT identified 29% more recurrences than clinical examination alone. OCT can detect subclinical residual NMSC lesions after MAL-PDT treatment and may therefore be an accurate tool for early detection of residual lesional tissue., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)