Retinoids in Cutaneous Chemoprophylaxis

This chapter highlights the proposed mechanism of retinoid action in chemoprophylaxis and gives health-care providers practical information from the literature regarding successful retinoid chemoprophylactic dosages, time frames used within the studies, and the side effects experienced by patients. Scant data exists on how retinoids express their effects as chemoprophylactic agents for cutaneous cancers. The treating physician must first establish the level of risk of developing non-melanoma skin cancers (NMSCs) and identify evidence in the literature supporting use of a chemoprophylactic retinoid. A meta-analysis of nine studies found that oral retinoids could be used to decrease the incidence of NMSC. Some of the earliest studies analyzing the efficacy of retinoids in the prevention of NMSC were in patients with xeroderma pigmentosum. There have been a few trials evaluating the efficacy of topical retinoids in the prevention of malignant melanoma. There is little literature supporting the use of pharmacologic retinoids for prophylaxis against malignant melanoma.