Clinical applications for topical 5-fluorouracil in the treatment of dermatological disorders

Topical 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) has been used for the treatment of dermatological conditions for nearly half a century. Although the indications for 5-FU approved by the US Food and Drug Administration include actinic keratosis and superficial basal cell carcinoma, studies also have demonstrated therapeutic efficacy for 5-FU in the treatment of many other dermatological conditions, including squamous cell carcinoma in situ, warts, psoriasis of the nail, keratoacanthoma, and vitiligo. This review discusses clinical data which support the use of 5-FU for these disease states.