Background: It is unclear if there are any distinct AK patient populations that might respond best to a given treatment.
Objective: To identify if a distinct subgroup of patients with AK might respond better to treatment with ingenol mebutate (IngMeb) versus diclofenac sodium (DS).
Methods: Complete clearance of AK and mean lesion reduction at end of first treatment course and week 17 were evaluated within subgroups.
Results: 502 patients (255 IngMeb; 247 DS) were included in the analysis. At week 17, complete clearance was achieved by more patients treated with IngMeb versus DS within the majority of patient subgroups, including patients with <6 lesions and ≥6 lesions at baseline, aged ≥65 years, males, females, Fitzpatrick skin types II and III, and facial lesions. Mean lesion reduction at week 17 was greater with IngMeb than DS within the same subgroups, and in patients with scalp lesions.
Conclusions: This responder analysis did not identify any distinct population that responded more optimally than others with IngMeb or DS. More patients achieved complete clearance and higher lesion reduction of AK with IngMeb compared with DS in most subgroups.
Keywords: actinic keratosis; diclofenac sodium; individualized treatment approach; ingenol mebutate; responder analysis.