Non-Invasive Imaging, Biomarkers, and Field-Directed Management in Actinic Damage and Early Skin Cancer

Actinic damage and early-stage skin cancers such as actinic keratoses and field cancerization pose a growing clinical challenge, driving demand for tools that detect, characterize, and monitor disease before it progresses. Advances in non-invasive imaging, including dermoscopy, reflectance confocal microscopy, optical coherence tomography, and line-field imaging, together with emerging molecular, histological, and photobiological biomarkers, are reshaping how clinicians assess actinic damage and stratify risk across affected skin fields.In parallel, field-directed management strategies are shifting care from single-lesion treatment toward whole-field approaches that address both visible and subclinical disease. A key priority is predicting and monitoring treatment response, where imaging such as dermoscopy and biomarkers can guide the choice and follow-up of photodynamic therapy (including methyl aminolevulinate and daylight PDT) and other field therapies.This Research Topic aims to bring together original research, reviews, and clinical perspectives on non-invasive imaging modalities, biomarker discovery and validation, and field-directed therapeutic strategies for actinic damage and early skin cancer. We particularly welcome contributions that advance early detection, improve risk stratification, and predict or monitor response to field-directed and photodynamic therapies. Our goal is to inform evidence-based, field-oriented management that bridges technological innovation and everyday clinical practice. Topic editors: MARIATERESA ROSSI, Tamara Gracia Cazaña Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/85055/non-invasive-imaging-biomarkers-and-field-directed-management-in-actinic-damage-and-early-skin-cancer