Fluorouracil topical for Actinic Keratosis User Reviews (Page 5)

• tgi...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• December 3, 2023

Fluorouracil topical "2014 Efudex treatment face (ex-Lifeguard, pontoon sailor, swimmer, beach) side effects were only facial itching, minor pains, nothing to write home about. 2023 Tolak (age 74 now) side effects were 95% presented, no blood in painful diarrhea but herniated disk presented w/no other suspects. Prior to 3rd-week treatment, pillows looked like a bloody crime scene, even though applications were the first thing in A.M. No more golf but walking 2 mi mostly OK as well as other exercises. Doc review of effects OK'd an early quit-date but by then could see the end of the tunnel and got all 4 weeks in. Writing this one week past treatment 'curing zone': some healing progress face, diarrhea gone, herniated disk pains vacillate, arrhythmia comes/goes, daily headache diminished, etc. Too early to judge if all the bad skin spots will peel off."

• Not...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 29, 2016

"I was prescribed fluorouracil for actinic keratosis, used it on my face, was told any redness, etc. would be temporary. That was four years ago. I'm permanently scarred w/ a few pock marks, particularly around the mouth. My face skin is now so much more sensitive than it used to be. Below my chin also gets red super easy, like if I just rub my hand across that area once or twice. (I later read a dermatologist say that he recommends excluding the chin area from treatment.) The one actinic keratosis on my nose had been removed and this was a prophylactic use. I'm very sorry I used this on my whole face. As far as being effective, I can't really say, because I'd be speculating as to if I would have gotten more or not."

• 1st...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 19, 2022

"62 yr. old male. This did work, but beware, for 'most' using this RX is very tough physically and is also mentally challenging. I had to treat my whole face, and after approx. days 5-6, my face began to get very red & tight, sores appeared all over, SEVERELY itch and started looking quite horrendous-which got progressively worse looking every day thereafter. I missed 3 weeks of work as I did not want to be seen/stared at by others as it's next to impossible to hide your face. The dermatologist did not say much, other than how to apply it.....I now know why!! The severe non-stop itching was the worst part for 'me'. Nothing I was told to use (anti-itch cream and Benadryl) gave me much relief. Sleep became hard to get (even though I was exhausted), felt nauseous at times, irritable, and loss of appetite. Back in my day, a sunburn was just a sunburn. You stayed out of the sun a day or two and then we'd be right back outside in the sun! I pray I never have to use this again!!!"

• Bre...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• April 6, 2022

"My prescribed treatment was a 5-day treatment for a compounded cream that included 0.005% calcipotriene with the 5% fluorouracil. My face looked like I had fallen asleep in a tanning booth. Sunburn appearance beginning day 3 of 5. After completing the 5-day regimen, 3 days later my face looked like I had a tan, but it was 2-3 layers of dead skin. The dead skin was thick, hard, and would stubbornly come off over 10 days. The skin around my mouth and the crease of my nose would split and weep. Now at day 10 of post-treatment recovery. It is too soon to judge effectiveness. This is a painful, prolonged treatment. I believe there are other treatment options (such as blue light treatment) which are effective, less destructive to the overall skin, less painful, and shorter patient recovery. If not offered, ask the physician if these would work for you before signing up for the fluorouracil cream treatment."

• Jud...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• January 27, 2025

"This is my 3rd time using fluorouracil 5% cream. It is quite unsightly and somewhat uncomfortable skin treatment. This time I am doing the treatment for the (minimum) full 2 weeks, 2X a day. Helpful hints: I apply Vaseline around eyes, lips, and creases on nose before applying cream. Also, I noticed one of the ingredients in fluorouracil cream is white petroleum, so I use a little of that Vaseline after letting the FU cream soak in (>1 hour) to the shabby parts. Also, I've found that a nice gentle warm shower relieves the uncomfortable dryness, then either applying fluorouracil cream (for treatment) or soothing/moisturizing cream (for healing). My doctor recommended using Vaseline for the healing phase. I'm hoping for better results this time because of a full 2-week treatment. Previous results with shorter treatments were less than impressive, and my problem areas came back after a year. Still, I am grateful that there is a medication that can reverse my skin damage and decrease skin cancer. It will be worth the side effects."

• My...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 22, 2021

"I started with the fluorouracil cream on Sunday afternoon. I washed my face with water and put it on again at night. I felt really tired and sick on Monday, so I stayed in bed but applied it again as directed. By Tuesday, I couldn’t stand it anymore and washed it off and didn’t apply it again. It’s Wednesday, and my face is tight and burning, and my eyes hurt, and I have a headache. To me, the pain and feeling sick and tired aren’t worth it. The VA has scheduled me an appointment to have cryotherapy, and I’m okay with that. I will never use this stuff again, and I give anyone who can do it for an extended period of time a bravo soul!"

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 12, 2020

"I live in Hawaii, and all the sun caught up with me. Since I'm on quarantine, I decided this is the best time to deal with this. My dermatologist prescribed fluorouracil to be applied twice a day. I've actually been putting it on once in the morning, once after I work out/shower, and then at night before bed. I checked in with my dermatologist, and she said to stick to the twice a day. I welcome that change as it's starting to burn and sting. At first, it was just irritating - the cream felt heavy and sticky on my face, but now it burns. I'm only in one week, I guess it gets worse before it gets better. Ugh."

• Mom...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 28, 2018

"I have been using 5 FU for 3 weeks now, once a day. I haven't had that bad of a reaction YET. The SCC spot on the side of my nose did start reacting right away, so have a lot of other spots on my nose, and a few other spots on my face as well. Showing me, yes, I have done a lot of damage all my days enjoying the outdoors without sunscreen. I have 9 more weeks to go, uggg. Has anyone else used this for 12 weeks once a day? Am I going to have a long 2 months of pain ahead of me? Or since I'm using it once a day, maybe the reactions won't be as severe."

• Ski...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 6, 2017

Fluorouracil topical "Used it for 4 days and no results whatsoever. Typical 5% fluorouracil creams show at least redness. Tolak has shown none. More so, the formulation of it is horrible in that there are little white clumps right out of the tube that make application difficult. The manufacturer offers hugely discounted coupons. You're better off buying the generic for better results."

• Joh...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 14, 2023

"The treatment is a little rough during the 2nd and 3rd weeks, but it is very effective and well worth it. I am 59 and did the treatment for 21 days, two times per day, on the forehead, temples, cheeks, nose, and ears. The first week, it just felt like having a sunburn. I am retired, but if I were still working, I would work during the first week. During the 2nd and 3rd weeks, my face felt raw, and it was painful to clean my face, dry it, and then put on the cream. It is tolerable though, and once the cream was on, I felt relief. My face looked tore up, but I still went out in public. I read that Fluorouracil is deadly for dogs. Don't let your pet get ahold of the tube or lick the treated area. It took several days following the treatment to start feeling better. I used Aquaphor and some of my wife's moisturizers. To quote a guy on YouTube going through the same thing, there are some things in life that you can't go around, you have to go through. Just do it!"

• For...
• December 5, 2020

"I've had a 'remarkable' reaction to this fluorouracil cream. It burned through multi-layers of skin in the center of my face - and like a 'T' across my forehead. Once I stopped using the cream, I tried several things to relieve the pain I was still having due to the peeling. Without question, the 'Bacitracin Plus' (with pain relief) (in the RED package) is the best of all. It has a topical analgesic in it, called 'Pramoxine HCl'. The manufacturer used to include Lidocaine, but has discontinued that in favor of Pramoxine. I now apply it to all of the affected area in small circles gently - and give it about 3 minutes to fully work. You'll need to apply it about every four hours - while awake - as newer, drier, flakier skin surfaces."

• Chu...
• February 19, 2021

"Last year I treated my scalp (twice daily x 21 days). This year I'm treating my scalp, face, ears, neck, upper back, and shoulders x 21 days, healing for 3 weeks, and then retreating for x 21 days. I've just finished my 4th week of active treatment. My scalp's healthier this year. Last year it was one solid red, scabby, crusty cap. This year it was only red and scabby in tiny spots the first 21 days, and has only been red in a few spots this past week. This has been my first time treating my face, ears, neck, upper back, and shoulders, and they looked like my scalp did last year during the first 21 days. They're only red in patches these past 7 days. The experience has not been fun, but not awful, and very well worth it to me. I've had previous Mohs and regular surgeries to remove squamous and basal cell cancers, and have had melanoma spots (plus their area lymph nodes) surgically removed. The sun has not been my friend. I think being mentally prepared to accept the process helped."

• B H...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 5, 2021

"I’m on day 6 of recovering from 14 days of 2x per day treatment of my full face: forehead, cheeks, nose, chin, and around lips. I’m a light-skinned Scotch-Irish complexion who has spent many summers near the equator on 4 continents and 4 winters in Siberia. The whole face lit up like a Christmas tree at about day 6 and then at day 8 or 9 with little blisters and sores that turned to scales over a lot of my forehead, cheeks, and chin. The last 3 days of applying Efudex were torture. I did this treatment in 2006, so I knew ahead of time that it would be rough, but now at age 68, the reaction was more widespread and intense. The worst were blisters on my lips. I used Tylenol during the day and hydrocodone on the worst nights for pain and applied Aquaphor salve during treatment and am now using aloe vera gel with itching and peeling. I have also taken Benadryl to help with itching, and last night I was able to sleep several hours. If doing this again, I would do parts of my face at a time."

• Apo...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 4, 2023

"71-year-old healthy patient has been prescribed Apoc-5fu to prevent future cancerous development on the nose. After 4 days, experienced a rash and pruritus on the back, stomach, wrists, arms, calves, which led to the early termination of the treatment. Now on Prednefrin Forte to combat the constant itching."

• Sus...
• December 6, 2022

"Used Efudix 5% cream on solar keratosis of the upper lip. The dermatologist prescribed it for two weeks, warning of a 'cold sore-like' localized reaction. On day 10, my upper and lower lips blistered badly, where the cream had not been applied. Very painful, but I persisted with the treatment until the end. Warm, salty water applied regularly relieved some of the pain. At night, I slathered my lips with Ungvita Vitamin A cream, then a thick cream for nappy (diaper) rash on top. Both lips were blistered, cracked, and bleeding. They're healing now, and I hope the keratosis is gone."

• wil...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 18, 2024

"Realize that this cream will cause eruption of your skin, yellow oozing pus areas (particularly if you ever knock off the blobs), extreme itching, and nerve endings causing electrical feelings. Definitely do NOT let the ooze drip into your eye if you are doing your brow ridge. I would suggest that you do small areas for 28 days, then move on rather than try to do a giant area of your face. Do not stop before the 28 days (you will definitely want to stop before 28 days, don't). Afterwards, it will take another 2 to 3 weeks to heal completely."

• DCI...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• February 16, 2025

Fluorouracil topical "Used nightly for 4 weeks as instructed by a dermatologist. Live in Scotland, so advised to only use on specific areas of actinic keratosis. Several areas on the forehead, under my eyes, and the entire nose where the sun would hit my face under my glasses/sunglasses, and a couple of spots on my right cheek which had shown signs of bleeding. Used a Q-tip to apply. 1st week itchy and burning. 2nd week redness and a more burning sensation, so I applied Tropic Skincare Tamanu balm during the day to keep skin moist, which helped hugely. 3rd week, skin redness spread to a wider area than I thought it was going to, and skin felt very tight. 4th week, I was glad I wore glasses as it hid a lot of the redness and crusting which started this week. I’m now two weeks post-treatment, and having used the Tamanu balm and castor oil on my face day and night, it is almost healed with only very slight redness remaining. Most areas appear smoother, though I may have to repeat on my nose. Would use again. Very pleased with results."

• Anonymous
• May 4, 2018

Fluorouracil topical "I work for a dermatologist. In order for Efudex to react, sun damage/AK's, cancer should be present. Undamaged skin will not react to Efudex."

• Dee...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 17, 2017

Fluorouracil topical "I have a question, not comment, please. I'm on day 6 of 14 days of application. No reaction. Is this normal? I'm applying a thin layer 2 times a day. Am I doing something wrong or is this normal?"

• Lee...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 3, 2020

Fluorouracil topical "I just started. I’m on day three. I am absolutely terrified."

• Why...
• June 14, 2018

Fluorouracil topical "Why priced out of the average person's cost? Really worked great for my skin condition. Now I can’t afford it. Greedy people."

• Cha...
• June 2, 2017

"Given Rx due to pre-cancerous spot on the side of the face. So far, I have had no side effects. I am on day 11 of a 14-day treatment. No redness, no peeling."

• Sah...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 29, 2016

Fluorouracil topical "I have used this cream for 5 days for pre-cancerous spots. Nothing is happening so far."

• Goa...
• October 31, 2016

"Worked fine in two weeks of 2x per day application on my bald head. However, some AKs returned. Starting treatments again."

• geo...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 25, 2021

"The nasty side effects of fluorouracil can be alleviated by using lidocaine cream or gel, but better the spray-on liquid formulation."