A number of patients I see admit to covering up moles on exposed areas with a plaster, or applying a high factor sunscreen specifically on moles that they are worried about. Which is a better practice? A research paper published in JAMA Dermatology earlier this year, tried to address that question: Impact of Sunscreens on Preventing […]
You don’t have to wait for your annual physician check-up to find a problem. There are plenty of easy detection methods you can use year-round to catch potential issues at their beginnings. Here are six signs that you may need to schedule yourself a little earlier than planned to see your doctor. Flaky Patches […]
The sunscreen industry is thriving on consumer demand in recent years, fuelled by the increasing skin cancer rates. However how many of the claims made by the sunscreen industry are true and do you really know what you think you know? Let us examine these notions further: Myth #1: Sunscreens protect us from skin […]
In recent years, propranolol has emerged as the wonder drug for treating vascular birth marks(called Haemangioma’s) in infants. These can often grow to large sizes, distorting the facial features, and sometimes causing blindness, life-threatening bleeding and even death. However, a few years ago, Propranolol (a drug used normally to reduce blood pressure) was accidentally discovered […]
As new drugs emerge, new side effects emerge. This paper below describes a new type of skin cancer (like growth) that can occur as a side effect of melanoma treatment. Title Squamoproliferative Lesions Arising in the Setting of BRAF Inhibition.[Article] Source American Journal of Dermatopathology. 34(8):822-826, December 2012. Abstract In recent years, there has been […]
Basal Cell Carcinoma’s are generally harmless skin cancers and do not spread anywhere else or kill people. They can grow to a big size locally, and even destroy bone if left untreated. Therefore treatment of the cancer (with either creams/ PDT or surgery, as appropriate) is recommended. However, in rare cases like the one described […]
This is a Free Dermatology Question posted via https://www.onlineskinspecialist.com/SkinCareblog/free-dermatology-consultation/ From: Pxxxx Sxxxx Message Body: There are small moles developing on my body parts. A couple of them are irregular (not round). Should I be worried?
The diagnosis of melanoma’s is one of the most controversial issues in dermatopathology. This paper addresses one of the very important issue of mitotic rate in melanoma’s. Existing guidelines attach a lot of importance to the presence of one mitosis in a melanoma. This study discusses the fallacy of such an approach and the […]
Pigmentation is the skin is produced by specialised cells in the skin called melanocytes. These are present in everybody in equal numbers, including people of dark or lighter skin colours. This might come as a surprise as one would expect more melanocytes in someone of darker skin colour. However the only difference in someone with […]
In general any lesion/ mole that is new or changing needs to be looked at by a dermatologist, as change is suspicious of skin cancer. If you are worried, please contact me via my website and I shall be more than happy to advice. It would certainly be helpful if you have a high quality […]