CAN ULTRAVIOLET ERYTHEMA BE USED TO IDENTIFY THE BASAL-CELL CARCINOMAPHENOTYPE

Since a prolonged duration of a strong UBV erythema has been suggested as a marker for propensity to develop skin cancer, we objectively fol lowed the duration and intensity of erythemas induced by UVB and UVA r adiation for 28 days in 18 patients with basal cell carcinoma (BCC), a nd in 15 healthy controls using reflectance spectrophotometry. The ery thema index, defined as the difference in redness between UV-exposed s kin and normal, adjacent skin on the lower abdomen, did not differ sig nificantly between the two groups at 24 h, when the reaction was maxim al, following a dose of 6 MED of UVB. Erythema values after 7 and 14 d ays were slightly higher in the BCC group, but this difference did not reach statistical significance. At day 7 some patients in the BCC gro up showed very strong erythemas. At days 21 and 28 the two groups had almost identical erythemal reactions. Following a standard dose of WA of 100 J/cm(2), patients with BCC and healthy controls both showed wea k erythemal reactions, which declined somewhat over the study period. No significant differences in pigmentary response were noted between t he BCC and the control group, neither following UVB nor UVA. Although individual patients with BCC deviate from the normal erythemal curve f or WB, the UVB response is not a suitable predictive instrument in scr eening patients with the basal cell carcinoma phenotype.