Actinic keratosis on the rise in Australia

Abstract

Objectives: To report the burden and cost of actinic keratosis (AK) treatment in Australia and to forecast the number of AK treatments and the associated costs to 2020.Design and setting: A retrospective study of data obtained from medicare Australia for AK treated by cryotherapy between 1 January 1994 and 31 December 2012, by year and by state or territory.Results: The total number of AK cryotherapy treatments increased from 247,515 in 1994 to 643,622 in 2012, and we estimate that the number of treatments will increase to 831,952 (95% CI 676,919 to 986,987) by 202. The total Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) benefits paid out for AK in 2012 was $19.6 million and we forecast that this wil..