Skin biopsies can look scary, as depending on how deep the biopsy needs to be, they can leave a wound of varying depths and sizes. Dr. Tanya Sale has tips for wound care following biopsy to help your skin heal faster and leave fewer scars. Clean the Area The dermatologist conducting the biopsy will begin the process of wound care for you, starting with cleaning the area. Any time your skin is broken or otherwise injured and the wound is simple enough to treat yourself, you should always make sure the wound and surrounding area are clean to prevent infection. In some cases of simple wounds, soa ..read more

By Phillip J. Keith, MD The sun is rough on runners. Any time you go outdoors, your skin is at risk of damage from the sun’s harmful UV rays. Sun damage not only causes wrinkles and discoloration but greatly increases your chance of developing skin cancers – including potentially fatal melanoma. Oftentimes runners don’t think about this, or sometimes do but downplay the concern – “I’ll only be in the sun for an hour,” or “I’ll be running on a shady road.” Even if it’s a cloudy, rainy day, UV rays are still present. While they are worse during peak times of 10am – 4pm, you can still damage your ..read more

By Dr. Kathryn Barlow Some of the most common questions patients have are about sun protection, skin cancer prevention and sunscreen use. There are many controversies about the safety of sunscreen and how this relates to the prevention of skin cancer. Here are several of the most common myths out there about sunscreen and sun exposure, and the science that debunks them. Myth #1 – Sunscreen causes cancer. Recently, several articles have claimed certain sunscreens like retinyl palmitate and oxybenzone can actually cause cancer or are harmful in other ways. To date, there is no scientific proof o ..read more

The National Council on Skin Cancer Prevention declares each Friday before Memorial Day Don’t Fry Day  – the perfect time to refresh your memory on how to keep your skin safe in the sun. Skin cancer is the most common type of cancer in the United States. Over 3.5 million new skin cancer cases are diagnosed each year and more than 2.2 million people die from skin cancer annually1. Essentially one American dies every hour from skin cancer2. Every year there are more new cases of skin cancer than there are combined new cases of breast, prostate, lung and colon cancer3. And one in five Americ ..read more