Recent Examples on the Web

The American Cancer Society also said that UV light can cause premature aging and signs of damage such as wrinkles, leather skin, liver spots, actinic keratosis and solar elastosis. Adrianna Rodriguez, USA TODAY, "What is UV light and can it kill the coronavirus? Here's everything you need to know," 4 Aug. 2020

After a lip sunburn, precancerous inflammation called actinic cheilitis (AC) can develop, and that could lead to squamous cell cancer. Claire Gillespie, Health.com, "Sunburned Lips: The Best Ways to Soothe and Heal Them, According to Dermatologists," 2 July 2020

Unlike melanoma which is usually characterized by unusual moles, lumps and markings, actinic keratosis appears as small, dry, scaly or crusty patches of skin, according to the Skin Cancer Foundation. NBC News, "How to heal dry, chapped lips, according to dermatologists," 20 Feb. 2020

That said, Solaraze is a prescription topical medication used to treat actinic keratoses (scaly patches of skin that can be a precursor to skin cancer) containing 3% diclofenac in a 2.5% hyaluronic acid gel. Sarah Jacoby, SELF, "Hyaluronic Acid Benefits: This Ingredient Is a Skin-Care Superstar for Good Reason," 3 Oct. 2019

Rupert Craven undergoes a biopsy of an actinic keratosis in Herfurt’s clinic. Karla Adam, Washington Post, "Britain braces for an exodus of E.U. doctors and nurses feeling hurt by Brexit," 4 Mar. 2018

Another summary concludes that nicotinamide acts in several ways to reduce actinic keratoses (your rough spots) and nonmelanoma skin cancers (Australasian Journal of Dermatology, August 2017). Joe, The Seattle Times, "Can a vitamin really help prevent skin cancer?," 24 Dec. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'actinic.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.