The application of 5-aminolevulinic acid in the treatment of precancerous lesions, skin cancer, and a new approach to the control of therapy

The aim of our work was to determine a therapeutic effect of photodynamic therapy (PDT). Twenty five patients with the Bowen's disease, actinic keratosis and basal cell carcinoma (superficial, nodular) were examined. They were treated with photosensitizer - aminolevulinic acid (metabolized in protoporphyrin IX), and the new red light source built of high-power diodes. A new method, based on numerical analysis of fluorescence imaging of tissues, was proposed as a way for controlling therapy.