Fun at the beach by macinate, on Flickr

At 11 years old, over half of kids use sunscreen, but that drops to just a quarter by the time kids are 14, according to a new study.

The study, published in Pediatrics, tracked 360 U.S. kids’ sunscreen and tanning behaviors for three years. The participants were first surveyed in 2004 as fifth graders, and they were surveyed again in 2007 as eighth graders.

Researchers found the following about kids’ sunburn and tanning experiences:

• More than half (53 percent) had suffered at least one sunburn by the age of 11.
• Half used sunscreen at the beginning of the study, but only 25 percent still did three years later.
• The proportion of kids who admitted to “liking a tan and spending time outside to get a tan significantly increased” as they got older.
• Two out of 10 went outside just to tan when they were in fifth grade; 4 out of 10 did by eighth grade.

According to the authors, the years of “periadolescence” (ages 11 to 14) seem to be “a crucial period” when kids and teens “increase or decrease their use of sun protection, obtain sunburns, or change their tan-promoting attitudes.”

“I think especially at this age, and in general, there are a lot of forces that promote tanning,” said lead researcher Dr. Stephen Dusza, of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City.

Dr. Sophie Balk, a pediatrician, said the study highlights that many kids aren’t protecting their skin.

“The problem is if you sunburn in childhood, you raise your risk of developing skin cancer later on,” said Dr. Balk.

According to Dusza, the next step is to figure out how to effectively promote sun protection in pediatric offices and community settings, like beaches and sporting events.

In addition to wearing sunscreen, Balk recommends protecting your skin with sun-protective clothing, hats and sunglasses.

The topical treatment is for basal cell carcinoma, the most common form of skin cancer. The cream kills tumors using rhenium-188, a radioactive isotope, and does not damage the skin around it.

In a study of 1,000 patients, the researchers reported that it removed the tumors in 95% of patients after one treatment.

An Alternative to Surgery?

Basal cell carcinoma, which grows slowly and is the least likely form of skin cancer to spread, is usually surgically removed. The topical treatment would offer an alternative so that patients with tumors on their faces could avoid scarring.

Dr. Ulli Köster, a researcher at the Institut Laue-Langevin in France, where the radioactive material is produced, said, “Typically this disease is treated by surgery, and since it doesn’t metastasize this is usually okay. But the problem is if the tumor is on the face, on the nose, ear or somewhere, it is strongly disfiguring – someone can have a big scar or lose half of his face.”

During treatment with the cream, a base layer is applied to the skin to protect the healthy cells from the radioactive isotope. The radioactive cream is then applied over the base and targets the tumor. Dr. Köster described it as “a localized radiation therapy.”

The researchers believe it could improve patients’ quality of life, because they could avoid facial scarring.

“I would imagine we are not talking about a major breakthrough but another option. It is nice to have a menu of different options for people, particularly with things that can have a cosmetic impact,” said Martin Ledwick, of Cancer Research UK.

According to the report, the next step will be larger trials in Germany. There was no word on whether trials were planned for the United States.

Winter Dry Skin Tips

Avoid hot showers. Dr. Neil Sadick, a dermatologist in New York City, says to avoid hot showers. Even though they may be comforting when it’s cold out, hot showers further dehydrate your skin, says Dr. Sadick. “Make showers as tepid as you can tolerate,” he said.

Be sure to use a moisturizer. Dr. Alicia Zalka, associate clinical professor of dermatology at Yale, recommends an old standby: Vaseline. She says that if you’ve already got very dry skin it can be good to use it for a few days as a sealer and a protectant. Plus, if your skin is already cracked, it doesn’t sting, she says.

Also wear sunscreen to protect skin from sun damage, even in the winter. Dr. Sadick recommends applying a broadband sunscreen once a day.

Think before you drink. Drink beverages with alcohol or caffeine in moderation, as they can be dehydrating, says dermatologist Dr. David Orentreich.

Do drink water to stay hydrated, but don’t rely on it to keep your skin healthy while it’s cold.

Use a humidifier. Dr Orentreich also recommends using a humidifier in your house, especially in your bedroom. That way “healing and repair can take place while you sleep,” he says.

In addition to your skin, also take special care of your hair and nails during the winter, as they can crack and split like the skin does, according to Dr. Zalka. Try B vitamin supplements to improve hair and nails, she says.

Dr. Sadick also suggests using a conditioner more frequently during the winter to keep hair from getting too dry.

For those who suffer from psoriasis, you may also be interested in our post about ways to keep psoriasis under control during the winter.

Cigarro by jfjwak on Flickr

Smoking can leave your skin wrinkled and sagging. A new study links it to a more serious skin condition as well: skin cancer.

Women who smoked for 20 years or more were twice as likely to develop squamous cell skin cancer than those who didn’t smoke. The second most common type of skin cancer, squamous cell skin cancer forms on cells of the skin’s outermost layer and is less aggressive than melanoma.

While the study found an association between smoking and skin cancer, it did not prove a cause and effect.

Study Details

The study compared 383 patients with skin cancer to 315 people without it. Researchers collected information on how much participants smoked, when they started smoking and the number of years they smoked.

In total, 355 men and 343 women participated in the study; all participants were white, which is the group who is most at risk for skin cancer.

The more people smoked, the more likely they were to have skin cancer, said the study’s lead author Dana Rollison.

Skin Cancer & Smoking: Gender Differences

For male participants, those who smoked had a “modest” risk for basal cell and squamous cell skin cancer, but the results weren’t statistically significant, according to the study authors.

Rollinson said they aren’t sure why there was a difference between the men’s and women’s risk, but the female hormone estrogen may play a role, she said.

How Smoking Ages Your Skin

While not as serious as cancer, smoking can also cause damage that ages your skin. It can cause wrinkles, uneven skin tone, sagging and lines around the lips.

There are non-invasive procedures that can help correct some of the cosmetic problems caused by smoking. Laser skin resurfacing and chemical peels remove the outer layer of skin, where the damage caused by smoking is most visible.

There are several reasons it may get worse in the winter, including drier air, less exposure to the sun and colder weather.

As winter approaches, here are some tips for treating winter psoriasis.

Moisturize. Moisturizing often — especially after bathing or showering — can stop cracks in the skin from forming, as well as help heal the existing dry patches.

“Put moisturizer on your skin 3 to 5 minutes after you towel off after a shower,” says Elizabeth A. Abel, MD, an adjunct clinical professor of dermatology at Stanford University School of Medicine in California. She says that doing it quickly makes a difference because it helps seal in moisture so the skin doesn’t get as dry.

Take shorter showers. Abel also recommends making your showers shorter and lukewarm.

“Avoid hot water,” she says. “Hot water feels good at the time, but the itching can rebound when you get out.” She also recommends using a soap for sensitive skin and avoiding scrubbing, which can irritate skin and make psoriasis worse.

Consider light therapy. Light therapy, also called phototherapy, uses ultraviolet light to slow the rapid growth of skin cells that occurs in those with psoriasis. This can help clear up the symptoms for a period of time after the treatment.

Turn on your humidifier. Using a home humidifier adds moisture back into the dry winter air and may help relieve some of the symptoms of psoriasis.

Check in with your dermatologist. If you are taking medications for your psoriasis, winter is the perfect time to make an appointment with your doctor so he or she can make sure the medications you are using are working well for you. Psoriasis medications include topical treatments, such as topical steroids, and systemic medications, which affect the entire body.

Sources:

• WebMD
• Psoriasis.org
• Beat Psoriasis.com

Image via www.melasciences.com

Experts say MelaFind, a device recently approved by the FDA, will help dermatologists in detecting melanoma.

Early detection is crucial for melanoma, as it is often curable when found early. If not, it is one of the most deadly types of cancer. According to the National Institutes of Health, over 70,000 people in the United States will be diagnosed with melanoma this year, and 16 percent are diagnosed after the disease has spread to other parts of the body.

MelaFind will help doctors decide whether or not to order a biopsy of suspected melanoma. The device has a handheld scanner and a computer program for analyzing images of skin lesions. It missed only 2 percent of biopsy-proven melanomas in a clinical trial.

One of MelaFind’s drawbacks is its high false-positive rate. Around 90 percent of the time, lesions that MelaFind finds suspicious are not melanoma. However, in that same trial, dermatologists who were not using MelaFind had an even higher false-positive rate.

While there were hopes that MelaFind would lower the number of unnecessary biopsies, some members of the FDA advisory panel were concerned it would increase the number, because of the high false-positive rate. However, the panel voted for approval because most members felt that the benefits outweighed the risk of unnecessary biopsies.

MelaFind won’t be replacing dermatologists — it’s a tool to help them with melanoma screenings. It is approved only for use by dermatologists who take a specialized training course.

“Every day patients come in with 20 moles on their back and the dilemma is, which ones are suspicious and need to be biopsied?” said Dr. David Pariser, former president of the American Academy of Dermatology. “The diagnosis of melanoma is the most serious one a dermatologist makes, and we have sleepless nights worrying about it,” said Pariser, who consulted for the device’s maker, Mela Sciences Inc., on its presentation to FDA.

Mela Sciences plans to roll out MelaFind to about 200 dermatologists on the East Coast next year.

Sources: WebMD, Associated Press

The study found that fractional carbon laser treatment for surgical scars was effective, significantly improving the appearance of scars, reported Reuters Health. The laser procedure also allows for the scar to be treated immediately, rather than having to wait several months to have the scar resurfaced.

The study had ten patients who had Mohs surgery for skin cancers, with wounds that were from 3 to 9 centimeters long. Four of the wounds were on the face; three were on the neck; and three were on arms.

Half the wound was treated with a fractional carbon dioxide laser; the other half was not treated with the laser. The entire wound was closed with sutures, a liquid adhesive and Steri-Strips.

Nine of the ten patients said the side of the wound treated with the laser looked better than the untreated side at a two- to three-month follow-up visit. They also felt the laser-treated sides were “significantly better with regard to elevation, discoloration and erythema” (redness of the skin).

Three dermatologists who didn’t know which side of the wound had been treated with the laser reviewed photos of the scars and found the laser-treated side to be cosmetically superior in each case.

The authors are planning a multi-center study to confirm the results. “More importantly,” author Dr. David Ozog said, “we want to see if this technique will improve long-term outcomes of some of the most problematic scars such as sternotomy after cardiac surgery and large abdominal scars.”

For those without access to a doctor with a fractional laser, “dermabrasion still works, with a good safety profile,” said Dr. Kishwer S. Nehal, director of Mohs surgery at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City.

Learn more about Fraxel laser treatments in the Twin Cities.

Dermatologists and cosmetic surgeons are now using many facial rejuvenation techniques as anti-aging hand treatments. The techniques are approved by the FDA to treat the face, but can be used as off-label treatments for other areas of the body, including the hands.

“As we age, our hands tend to lose their firmness and volume and the veins and tendons become more pronounced,” said Dr. Dee Anna Glaser, a dermatologist and fellow in the American Academy of Cosmetic Surgery. “In addition, changes in texture where the skin appears crinkled or is marked with spots, commonly called ‘liver spots’ or ‘age spots,’ are the hallmarks of an aging hand.”

Anti-Aging Hand Treatments

Fillers have long been used to restore volume to the face. Now they’re also being used to re-establish fullness to the hands. Adding volume to the hands helps to diminish the appearance of veins and tendons.

Popular fillers for the hands include Restylane and Juvederm. Some patients may experience bruising, and results last about a year, according to Dr. Glaser.

Lasers can also be an effective anti-aging procedure for the hands. They are great for treating uneven skin tone and texture and pigmentation and discoloration on the face, and they can be used to treat the same problems on the hands.

“The hands are often overlooked because we put so much emphasis on our face, but our hands can be even more susceptible to the effects of aging,” said Dr. Glaser.

Talk to your dermatologist about the available options to treat aging hands. Meanwhile, don’t forget that prevention is best, so wear sunscreen and be sure to cover all exposed areas of skin, including the backs of your hands.

Sources: AAD.org, WebMD

There is a huge array of face-washing products — from makeup removers and scrubbing pads to exfoliating gels and toners. However, dermatologists recommend that if you have reasonably normal skin, all you need is a gentle face soap and a moisturizer. The skin care routine is simple:

• Wash your face in the morning.
• Apply a moisturizer with sunscreen.
• Wash your face before bed.
• Apply a moisturizer.

“You don’t need 25 products to have good, clean skin,” says dermatologist Karen Nern. “Cleansing your face is not complicated.”

Most pre- and post-face wash products are a waste of money for relatively normal skin, and some people “can do too much with too many products and irritate their skin,” Nern says.

For instance, dermatologist Meryl Blecker Joerg says that there’s no need for post-wash toners because “they tend to remove the natural oils that should remain on the skin.” Today most cleansers are at a normal pH, making toners unnecessary.

Dermatologists also warn against fads, such as washing your face with bleach or with hydrogen peroxide — two current ones being promoted on the Internet. “Way too harsh,” Nern says.

Choosing a Face Wash for Your Simple Skin Care Routine

Your face wash is important since it’s one of the only products you’ll use for your skin care routine.

You can choose a bar, gel or liquid; what’s important is that the product is formulated for the face, not the body. Also, avoid products that contain deodorant, antiseptics or other additives.

Talk to your dermatologist about which soap or cleanser they recommend. It doesn’t have to be expensive to work well. Brands like Dove, Purpose and Cetaphil are often recommended by dermatologists for patients who are on a budget.

Zelboraf is part of a new generation of “personalized’’ cancer-fighting drugs, which are tailored to attack genetic vulnerabilities of malignancies. It has been shown to extend survival for the 50 percent of melanoma patients whose tumors have the BRAF V600E mutation; the FDA also approved a new test for the BRAF mutation.

Zelboraf is not a cure for melanoma, but it will make a difference in the lives of BRAF-positive melanoma patients, said Anna Pavlick, DO, co-director of the melanoma program at New York University’s Cancer Institute. Melanoma is the most deadly form of skin cancer; about 9,000 Americans will die from it this year.

Pavlikc explained that if a patient’s melanoma tumor has the genetic mutation BRAF, Zelboraf will attack the tumor, shrink it and stop the progression of the disease. The drug comes in a pill form, taken twice a day.

In a study of 675 patients with late-stage melanoma with the mutation, 77 percent of those who took Zelboraf were still living, while only 64 percent of those who received a standard chemotherapy drug survived eight months, the FDA said.

The drug has been well-tolerated by patients, according to Pavlick, who was an investigator in Zelboraf clinical trials. However, it can have some serious side effects. About a quarter of patients during the trials developed a non-melanoma form of skin cancer called cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, which can usually be removed via relatively simple surgery.

Other side effects include joint pain, rash, fatigue and nausea, and patients must avoid exposure to the sun while taking Zelboraf.

The approval of Zelboraf follows the recent approval of another drug for the treatment of late-stage metastatic melanoma, Yervoy.