Psoriasis from medication

Hi Tropical Bird,

Thanks for getting in touch. I hope you’re finding the online community a useful source of support and information. My name is Eileen and I’m one of the Cancer Information Nurse Specialists on the Macmillan Support Line.

I’m sorry to hear about the psoriasis affecting your scalp. Medications such as Imatinib can cause various side effects including skin changes.

There are various treatments that can be prescribed for psoriasis including a range of topical gels and creams that can be applied to the affected area.

You don’t mention whether you have had any topical treatments prescribed by your team at the hospital or by your GP. If you haven’t, please speak to them about this in order that they can review your scalp.

If you have already been prescribed treatments, and these have not been effective it’s important that you ask for your symptoms to be reviewed. Sometimes you need to try several treatments before you find one that controls the condition.

In some instances, you might be referred to see a Dermatologist, who is a specialist in skin conditions for their opinion on how best to manage the condition.

I hope this information is helpful but if you would like to talk with one of our nurses on the phone in more detail, we would be happy to hear from you. You can call us free of charge on 0808 808 0000 or you can chat to us or email us. We are here every day from 8am to 8pm.

Best wishes,

Eileen

Macmillan Cancer Information Nurse Specialist

Ref:EM/DS