Researchers at the University of Michigan tested the cancer drug called fluorouracil on 21 patients with sun-damaged skin as well as actinic keratoses. The latter is a condition where intense sun exposure causes skin lesions that are considered to be pre-cancerous. Fluorouracil is already used to treat colon cancer, pancreatic cancer and head and neck cancers.

In the study it was used in a skin cream form, which contained 5% of the drug. The study lasted for 24 weeks with participants using the cream called Efudex twice daily for two weeks. The researchers examined the participants six months after the study started and reported that skin lesions dropped to 1.5 lesions per person from 11.6 lesions per person when the study began.

Some 19 of 20 participants reported improvement in their sun-damaged skin, while 16 of 19 also said their wrinkles faded after using the cream.

"For patients in whom a course of topical fluorouracil is indicated for the treatment of actinic keratoses, there will likely be the additional benefit of a restorative effect from sun damage; this may provide further motivation for these patients to undergo the rigorous treatment," the authors led by Dr. Dana L. Sachs, of the University of Michigan Medical School wrote in the latest issue of the journal Archives of Dermatology.

Some patients said the treatment was "uncomfortable", while one of them quit the study after one week citing severe skin inflammation as the cause. The researchers say the cream containing fluorouracil caused the skin to become red and irritated and then peeled off the unhealthy skin.

However Dr Sachs cautioned that patients without skin damage may also want to use the cream to get rid of wrinkles, but there is no evidence to indicate if the cream works in healthy people without sun-damaged skin. The study was funded by Valeant Pharmaceuticals International.

According to the National Cancer Institute , exposure to ultraviolet radiation is a risk factor that may increase the risk of skin cancer. It adds that in order to avoid sun damage, consumers must adopt the following methods:
    * Use sunscreen
    * Avoid outdoor activities when the sun is at its strongest
    * Ensure that wear long sleeve shirts, long pants, sun hats, and sunglasses when you go outside

The above study shows that it is possible to prevent or treat sun-damage by using topical fluorouracil for cosmetic purposes and avoiding expensive procedures like ablative laser resurfacing. However bigger trials are needed to confirm these findings.