# Methyl aminolevulinate

Source: https://onco.cc/drugs/methyl-aminolevulinate/  
OnCo record `methyl-aminolevulinate` (Treatment). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

Methyl aminolevulinate is a cream applied to sun-damaged skin or a superficial basal cell carcinoma and then activated with red light, clearing precancerous and early skin cancers with better cosmetic results than surgery or freezing.

## Summary

Methyl aminolevulinate photodynamic therapy has been approved in Europe since 2001 for actinic keratosis, superficial and nodular basal cell carcinoma and Bowen's disease, and in the United States since 2004 (Metvixia) for thin actinic keratoses of the face and scalp. Clearance rates for superficial basal cell carcinoma approach those of surgery in randomised trials with fewer scars, though recurrence over five years is somewhat higher, so guidelines reserve it for low-risk lesions and for patients with many lesions or poor healing. Pain during illumination is the main drawback. Galderma markets it.

## Fields

- Kind: Treatment
- Status: established
- Last checked: 2026-09-08
- Also known as: MAL
- Tags: gap-fill; chembl-universe
- Brand: Metvix / Metvixia
- Modality: Topical photosensitiser cream for photodynamic therapy
- Mechanism: A lipophilic ester of aminolevulinic acid that abnormal keratinocytes convert to protoporphyrin IX; red light three hours later generates singlet oxygen that destroys the lesion.
- Approvals: US 2004: Thin non-hyperkeratotic actinic keratoses of the face and scalp, with red light photodynamic therapy

## Sources

- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methyl_aminolevulinate
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methyl_aminolevulinate
- ChEMBL CHEMBL1201306: https://www.ebi.ac.uk/chembl/explore/compound/CHEMBL1201306

## Connected records

- cancers: [Basal cell carcinoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/basal-cell-carcinoma/)

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