Intralesional 5-Fluorouracil for Keloids: A Systematic Review

Keloids are benign, fibroproliferative dermal tumours, often arising after trauma, that are more common in darker skin types. Numerous therapeutic options have been employed for the treatment of keloids; however, there is no one gold standard approach. Five-fluorouracil, a potent chemotherapeutic agent, has emerged as a promising therapeutic option. Therefore, this systematic review, using Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, focused on providing a broad overview of the use of 5-fluorouracil for the management of keloids. Forty studies (2325 patients) met inclusion criteria and investigated 5-fluorouracil for keloid management, with 19 studies (1043 patients) including a 5-fluorouracil monotherapy group. Five-fluorouracil monotherapy demonstrated consistent keloid improvement with >254 keloids injected across various anatomical regions. Five-fluorouracil monotherapy was most often compared to intralesional triamcinolone acetonide, utilizing the Patient and Observer Scar Assessment Scale and the Vancouver Scar Scale. The most common keloid parameters assessed were height, size, volume, width, length, induration, pruritus, and erythema. Five-fluorouracil monotherapy exhibited substantial improvements, with weight averages of 73% of patients experiencing >25% improvement and 67% achieving >50% improvement. Relapse rate was 16% at 27 weeks after 5-fluorouracil monotherapy treatment. Limitations included potential selection bias, language restrictions, and heterogenous data analysis among studies. Overall, our findings underscore the potential effectiveness of 5-fluorouracil monotherapy in the management of keloids, with an encouraging safety profile. Larger prospective trials are needed to determine optimal therapy or combination therapy for the management of keloids. This detailed compilation of treatment protocols, outcomes, and relapse rates stand as a valuable resource for further research and clinical applications.