Dr. George Martin discusses recently FDA-approved tirbanibulin 1% topical ointment for treating actinic keratosis.
Tirbanibulin (Klysyri) ointment 1% (Almirall; Barcelona, Spain) is being called a game changer for the treatment of actinic keratosis (AK). FDA-approved in December 2020, tirbanibulin is a short-duration topical used once daily for five days.
In an exclusive interview with The Dermatology Digest, George Martin, MD, Dr. George Martin Dermatology, Kihei, Hawaii, says this is a powerful molecule that is not only safe and efficacious, but also fosters patient compliance with therapy.
“We have great compliance with this molecule, not only because of its efficacy and short duration, but when [researchers] looked at the irritation scale, which was a zero to 18 composite scale, and that included erythema, scaling—even crusting, blistering, erosions, ulcerations—very rarely, and certainly less than 10%, did we see more of the severe side effects that are well known with our current therapies, like 5-Fluorouracil and imiquimod,” says Dr. Martin.
Importantly treatment with tirbanibulin allows patients to continue their normal day-to-day lives without the downtime often needed for these and other AK therapies.
Dr. Martin also offers insights on molecule absorption, the 25 cm2 treatment field, patient followups, AK recurrence, and application instructions, adding, “I would look at this as probably being the easiest drug to use for the treatment of field cancerization.”
