What if efudex does not work

Care must be taken to protect your finger that you apply the cream with — I recommend wearing disposable nitrile gloves when applying, and then wash hands afterwards. You also have to be very careful not to get efudix too close to the eyes or other sensitive body parts.

Discuss this with your doctor. It is one of the most effective treatments we have for actinic keratosis. Doctors may occasionally use efudix for other lesions. You should talk with your treating doctor. This depends on your treatment area.

Discuss with your doctor. In general, I recommend pouring a pea sized blob of efudix onto your finger, and applying pea sized blobs if you are treating your entire face e. Advice may differ, and you should discuss exact details of dose with your treating doctor. It is pretty uncomfortable. I tell patients to imagine the worst sunburn of their life, multiply the pain a few times, and imagine being like that for weeks.

It is easier to deal with if you only have small areas you are treating, and especially if those areas are not on the face or not in areas of facial expression. Moving the facial muscles or laughing can be quite painful. It is usually not too bad for the first days. Then it gets very red and sore. The skin can become cracked and often there can be ooze. If you are concerned about the possibility of infection, you should talk to your doctor see below.

Many people who use it on the face will take weeks off work. If you are in a lot of pain, talk to your doctor about options. We can decrease the pain, but doing this may decrease how effective the treatment is. If the cells are unable to divide, they die. The faster the cells are dividing, the more likely it is that chemotherapy will kill the cells, causing the tumor to shrink. They also induce cell suicide self-death or apoptosis.

Chemotherapy drugs that affect cells only when they are dividing are called cell-cycle specific. Chemotherapy drugs that affect cells when they are at rest are called cell-cycle non-specific.

The scheduling of chemotherapy is set based on the type of cells, rate at which they divide, and the time at which a given drug is likely to be effective. This is why chemotherapy is typically given in cycles. Unfortunately, chemotherapy does not know the difference between the cancerous cells and the normal cells. This would be a great conversation to have with your doctor, about alternative treatment options and why your doctor keeps pushing Efudex.

If so, how many weeks of treatment did you do and was it successful? Perhaps some of our other community members can jump in to respond. When the shock wore off and thinking overcame emotions, I started to have concerns. I had reactions to Pharmaceuticals before, one long lasting one. So I try to do my homework. This site came up. I lost my husband to colon cancer in January, so am alone dealing with this.

Would you suggest a plastic surgeon treat when nose is involved? Any info is appreciated. Thanks for your message. Believe me, I understand the emotions and shock that can accompany doctor visits. What did your doctor diagnose your area as? Was it actinic keratosis, basal cell, or something else?

For my actinic keratosis areas, many of them go away on their own. I would definitely let your doctor know of your previous reaction and that you are hesitant to using Efudex, and see if there is an alternative treatment available. And if your doctor says no, you may want to get a second opinion. You are your own best advocate, and you are entitled to have a say in your treatment.

Some people have great results with Efudex, and some people have a really hard time with using it. My dermatologist recommended Effudex about 30 years ago and I tried it once, but only on the backs of my hands. In short, it was painful process, which in hindsight provided me with no long term benefit. Never again. Efudix 5-FU cream has been used for more than 50 years for treating pre cancerous sunspots and early stages of superficial squamous skin cancers IEC.

It selectively destroys sun-damaged cells in the skin, whilst retaining the normal healthy skin cells. After 5 to 10 days of treatment, the sun-damaged parts of treated skin become red and scaly. As treatment is continued, sores and crusts may appear. These raw areas result from the destruction of defective skin cells. Treatment could cause stinging or burning sensation, depending on the sensitivity of the skin and the severity of the sun damage.

How to apply the Efudix cream? After your skin is completely dry, apply a thin film of the cream to the affected skin and rub it gently onto your skin. Apply a small amount of medication to the affected skin, using just enough to cover the area with a thin film.

Avoid make-up creams if you notice erosion or ulceration in the skin. Wash your hands thoroughly after applying the cream. Do not apply to broken skin or open cuts. Use it with care in skin folds such as those around the nose and lips.