Psoralen in conjunction with UVA (PUVA) is perhaps the most effective treatment for psoriasis. It is, however, a risk factor for skin cancer in these patients and there is a need to develop non-invasive assays reflective of treatment-induced DNA damage. We report here the assessment of two important lesions, thymine dimer (TG Gf fT) and 8-oxo-2P P-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG), in the urine of psoriasis patients. It was found that, once corrected for urine concentration, the psoriatic group had significantly higher (P6 6 0.0001) urinary levels of thymine dimers compared to the control group. No significant differences in urinary 8-OHdG levels were noted between the psoriatic, atopic dermatitis and control groups. Therefore biomonitoring of therapy from the very start with this simple and non-invasive assay could perhaps be an effective measure of the risk involved with the treatment allowing optimization for minimal-risk therapy.z 1999 Federation of European Biochemical Societies.

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