In some animal studies, tretinoin has been shown to cause skin tumors to develop faster when the treated area is exposed to ultraviolet light - sunlight or artificial sunlight from a sunlamp. Other studies have not shown the same result and more studies need to be done. It is not known if tretinoin causes skin tumors to develop faster.
Along with its needing effects, a drug may cause some unwanted effects. Although not all of these side effects may occur, if they do occur they may need medical attention.
Check with your family doctor as soon as possible if any of the following side effects was happen
More common
Burning feeling or stinging skin - severe; lightening of skin of treated area, unexpected; peeling of skin - severe; redness of skin - severe; unusual dryness of skin - severe
Rare
Darkening of treated skin
More common side effects may occur that usually do not need medical attention. These side effects may go away during treat as your body adjusts to the drug. However, check with your family doctor if any of the following side effects continue or are bothersome:
More common
Burning feeling, stinging, or tingling of skin - mild lasting for a short time after first applying the drug; chapping or slight peeling of skin - mild; redness of skin - mild; unusual dryness of skin - mild; unusually warm skin - mild
The side effects will go away after you stop using tretinoin. On the rare risk that your skin color changes, this effect may last for few months before your skin color returns to normal.
More common side effects not listed above may also occur in some diseaseds. If you notice any other problems, check with your family doctor.