What should you know about pink sun spots on skin?

Sun spots, also called age spots or solar lentigines, are usually flat areas of altered pigment on skin that receives sunlight, such as the face, hands, shoulders, chest, and forearms. They are more often brown, but irritation, recent treatment, inflammation, or surrounding skin changes can make a mark appear pink.

A pink mark is not automatically a sun spot. Dermatitis, a healing area, a precancerous change, or another skin growth can look similar. A clinician considers the border, scale, texture, symptoms, and whether the lesion is changing.

Use broad-spectrum sunscreen and protective clothing, seek shade, and avoid picking or repeatedly scrubbing the area. Photograph the spot in consistent lighting so you can notice changes in outline, colour, or surface.

Do not start pigment-lightening products or home acids on an undiagnosed pink lesion. After assessment, options for confirmed sun spots may include chemical peel, IPL photofacial, picosecond laser treatment, or cryotherapy (lesion removal). Treatment choice depends on diagnosis, site, skin tone, and risk of temporary colour change.

Arrange a prompt skin examination if the mark grows, changes shape or colour, becomes rough or thick, repeatedly crusts, bleeds, hurts, or fails to heal. Seek urgent advice for rapidly worsening redness, warmth, swelling, pus, or fever.

Ask whether this is a sun spot or another lesion, whether it needs dermoscopy or sampling, how sun protection should be tailored to you, and which treatment has the lowest risk of unwanted pigmentation.