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| Welcome
to the Department of Dermatology Skin Cancer Education Site Our goal is to increase public awareness and to educate, prevent, diagnose, and treat patients with skin cancer. The Department of Dermatology at Johns Hopkins remains committed to promoting skin cancer awareness and early detection through public awareness. Many people wonder: “What does skin cancer look like” First, there are different types of skin cancer. Melanoma, the most serious form of skin cancer, is usually (but not always) brown-black. Criteria that are useful to diagnose melanoma are the ABCD’s: A= Asymmetry B= Borders C= Color D= Diameter (increasing or large) Here are examples of melanomas from the Johns Hopkins Department of Dermatology Clinical Image Database http://dermatlas.med.jhmi.edu/derm/ What can I do to prevent skin cancer? 1) Avoid direct sun exposure 10am-2pm 2) Use sunscreen, broad spectrum UVA-UVB, reapply every 2 hours 3) Use sunprotective clothing, such as broad rimmed hats and long sleeves 4) Always remember to protect your children!! Where can I learn about Clinical Trials? What are they and where can I Find information about them. To see more about clinical trials, go to for our patients, or click here |
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FDA Approves New Over-the-counter
Sunscreen Product The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Anthelios SX, a sunscreen from L'Oreal, to be sold over-the-counter (OTC) for the prevention of sunburn and for protection against ultraviolet B (UVB) and ultraviolet A (UVA) rays. It has a sun protection factor (SPF) of 15. To read more, click here Melanoma Patients with Atypical Moles at High Risk of Additional Melanoma According to an article recently published in the Archives of Dermatology, patients diagnosed with melanoma who have other atypical moles have a significantly increased risk of developing a subsequent melanoma and should continue close follow-up with a dermatologist. To read more, click here Hello Guinness volunteers! Congratulations to everyone for a successful screening day on Saturday, May 6. Media coverage across the country was amazing. Approximately half of the 200 screening sites have returned their materials and our initial un-audited number of people screened is 10,000! We surpassed our goal! THE BEAUTY QUEEN AND THE MOLE Johns Hopkins Medicine Media Relations and Public Affairs Preparing to vie for the crown of Miss Maryland while working toward her nursing degree kept 21-year-old Brittany Lietz of Edgewater, Md., on a tight timetable. But time threatened to run out for Lietz last year when she noticed that a long-standing, brownish-red mole on her back bled when it was irritated. - To read more Skin Deep - Dealing With the Dangers of Basking in the Sun By Katherine Leventhal As a typical Caucasian-American, my background is an assortment of European nationalities: Lithuanian Jew, Irish, Swedish, and French-Canadian. My ancestors were not a sun-loving people.....My mom is even fairer skinned than I am—she’s mostly Irish, with red hair, pale blue eyes, and skin that freckles and burns rather than tans. - To read more Don't let lawsuits turn you off sunscreen In families such as the Parker household in Agoura Hills, Calif., there’s one item that’s become as much a summer staple as popsicles: sunscreen. Destinee Kerr Parker, like other self-respecting parents across America, doesn’t allow her 2-year-old son Kekoa to go near sand, water or playground without at least a quick swipe of something with SPF. - To read more Do Your Skin a Favor: Protect it in Summer By JANE E. BRODY With the outdoor season in full swing across the Northern Hemisphere, everyone's thoughts should turn to sun protection. That means you, whether you have light or dark skin, have blue or brown-black eyes, always sit in the shade, or often play or bask in the sun. -To read more Your Tan Could Kill You By Jennifer Barrett Newsweek Lesley Miller might not have known until it was too late. Five years ago a friend spotted a dark mole on her right shoulder and urged her to get it checked. "The dermatologist took one look and said, 'That has to come off'," remembers Miller, a fair-skinned south Florida resident who'd grown up at the beach. "It was terrifying." - To read more Olay & Maggie Gyllenhaal Skin Cancer Crusade Maggie Gyllenhaal is teaming up with Olay to help spread awareness about skin cancer. Increasing the awareness of skin cancer prevention and detection is a cause very dear to me because I have had three very close friends battle skin cancer in the last year. I have learned from their experiences that detecting skin cancer early can save your life. Any time you feel concerned that a freckle or mole might be changing in size, shape or color it's important to alert your dermatologist immediately. - To read more Beginning July 1, 2006, The Department of Dermatology will be expanding clinical skin cancer services. Because of the increasing needs for skin cancer treatment, the department has increased its capacity to treat patients. Through the department's collaborative relationship with the Coalition for Skin Cancer in Maryland, we have embarked on a project that includes educational materials to raise public awareness and teach people about the importance of skin cancer prevention and early detection. In order to improve patient diagnosis and treatment, the Department of Dermatology has begun a project to expand and improve its already existing cutaneous oncology database to help researchers develop new methods to detect and treat melanoma and other skin cancers. While the Dermatology Department has had a Cutaneous Oncology Database since 1980, this new update will provide researchers with new tools to answer important research questions. The Johns Hopkins Department of Dermatology welcomes Dr. Radha Mikkilieni to the dermatopathology team. Dr. Radha Mikkilieni will join our practice in July of 2006. Dr. Mikkilieni has extensive experience in pigmented lesions and looks forward to participating in the Johns Hopkins Melanoma and Cutaneous Oncology Group. |
