What is "resiquimod"

n. A chemical analogue of imiquimod, potentially useful in treating skin cancer.

Resiquimod (R-848) is a drug that acts as an immune response modifier, and has antiviral and antitumour activity. It is used as a topical gel in the treatment of skin lesions such as those caused by the herpes simplex virus and cutaneous T cell lymphoma, and as an adjuvant to increase the effectiveness of vaccines. It has several mechanisms of action, being both an agonist for toll-like receptor 7 and 8, and an upregulator of the opioid growth factor receptor.