{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,12]],"date-time":"2026-08-12T08:37:51Z","timestamp":1786523871131,"version":"build-2736575974"},"reference-count":18,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"4","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,12]],"date-time":"2026-08-12T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1786492800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Italian Ministry of Health with Ricerca Corrente"},{"name":"5 \u00d7 1000 funds"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Med. Sci.","Medical Sciences"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background\/Objectives: Actinic keratosis is an intraepithelial lesion that may progress into squamous cell carcinoma; therefore, all lesions should be treated. The study aimed to investigate the potential correlations between patient and lesion characteristics, treatment option choice, and clinical outcomes, analyzing long-term real-world data. Methods: A retrospective study was conducted in a specialized hospital in Milan. Data on patients with actinic keratoses were collected from January 2018 to July 2024. Results: A total of 369 patients were included, with normal weight (58%), higher educational level (83%), personal skin cancer history (51%), childhood sunburns (68%), and face localization (70%), with multiple contiguous distribution (54%) of lesions. In total, 45.5% received multiple treatments. Field-directed therapies were prescribed in 84% of cases (32% of complete clearance). A total of 43% were lost to follow-up. Higher educational level, personal and familiar skin cancer history, previous atypical naevus excision, higher naevus count, and multiple treatments (p &lt; 0.05) were associated with regularity in visit attendance. In multivariable analysis, immunosuppression (OR = 5.01 [0.97, 29.5], p = 0.056) and multiple contiguous lesions (OR = 4.62 [1.75, 14.7], p = 0.004) were found to be significantly associated with incomplete clinical response. Conclusions: Real-world data on patients with actinic keratoses may help identify more personalized management strategies that influence treatment outcomes and adherence to follow-up.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/medsci14040474","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,12]],"date-time":"2026-08-12T07:57:26Z","timestamp":1786521446000},"page":"474","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Real-World Data on Characteristics and Management of Patients with Actinic Keratosis: A Cancer Center Experience"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"14","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1629-1458","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Flavia","family":"Silvestri","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Dermato-Oncology Unit, European Institute of Oncology, IRCCS, 20141 Milan, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7993-2473","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Francesca","family":"Pepe","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Dermato-Oncology Unit, European Institute of Oncology, IRCCS, 20141 Milan, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-1348-4548","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Sara","family":"Gandini","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Molecular and Pharmaco-Epidemiology Unit, Department of Experimental Oncology, European Institute of Oncology, IRCCS, 20139 Milan, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4944-7685","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Aurora","family":"Gaeta","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Molecular and Pharmaco-Epidemiology Unit, Department of Experimental Oncology, European Institute of Oncology, IRCCS, 20139 Milan, Italy"},{"name":"Department of Statistics and Quantitative Methods, University of Milano-Bicocca, 20126 Milan, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9917-6633","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Paola","family":"Queirolo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Division of Medical Oncology for Melanoma, Sarcoma and Rare Tumors, European Institute of Oncology, IRCCS, 20141 Milan, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8231-2814","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Giulio","family":"Tosti","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Dermato-Oncology Unit, European Institute of Oncology, IRCCS, 20141 Milan, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,12]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"544","DOI":"10.1111\/bjd.17632","article-title":"Healthcare utilization and management of actinic keratosis in primary and secondary care: A complementary database analysis","volume":"181","author":"Noels","year":"2019","journal-title":"Br. 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