A critical re-evaluation of Mohs micrographic surgery for a facial basal cell carcinoma in older adults: Should we waive this treatment in certain patients?

Background: Skin cancer incidences are increasing. Treatment for basal cell carcinomas (BCCs) can be questioned in certain patients. Treatment options are various, but Mohs micrographic surgery (MMS) has the highest cure rate.

The therapeutic dilemma of basal cell carcinoma in older adults: A review of the current literature.

Skin cancer is known to be a significant health care threat due to the massively increasing numbers of diagnoses. In 2019, 4 million basal cell carcinoma (BCC) cases were diagnosed globally, making BCC the most frequent of all cancers worldwide in fair skinned populations. Given the increasing life-expectancy for all countries worldwide (by 2050, the world's population of people aged 60 years and older will have doubled), the incidence of BCC is expected to keep increasing in the future.

Study protocol of the BASINEL Study: a pragmatic randomised controlled trial investigating treatment versus no treatment of low-risk basal cell carcinomas in older persons.

Introduction: Basal cell carcinomas (BCCs) represent 70% of all skin cancers. These tumours do not metastasise but are locally invasive if left untreated. There is a high incidence of BCC in the elderly, and clinicians frequently face important treatment dilemmas.

Fibrotic enzymes modulate wound-induced skin tumorigenesis.

Fibroblasts are a major component of the microenvironment of most solid tumours. Recent research elucidated a large heterogeneity and plasticity of activated fibroblasts, indicating that their role in cancer initiation, growth and metastasis is complex and context-dependent. Here, we performed genome-wide expression analysis comparing fibroblasts in normal, inflammatory and tumour-associated skin.

Teledermatology in Belgium: a pilot study.

: Teledermatology, the application of telemedicine in the field of dermatology, can be a valuable tool to improve the efficiency of care in general practice.: In this pilot study, we implemented a teledermatology programme in Belgian context to assess the effect on referral rate and to evaluate the acceptability of teledermatology by clinicians and patients.: A store-and-forward teledermatology service between 12 general practitioners (GPs) and 3 academic dermatologists was evaluated for a period of 3-6 months.

Fractional Carbon Dioxide Laser of Recent Surgical Scars in the Head and Neck Region: A Split-Scar, Evaluator-Blinded Study.

Background: Postoperative scarring is a common cause of patient dissatisfaction. Several strategies have been developed to improve its clinical aspects.

Objective: To assess efficacy and safety of the 10,600 nm ablative fractional carbon dioxide (CO2) laser in the treatment of recent surgical scars in the head and neck region.

Total-Body Examination vs Lesion-Directed Skin Cancer Screening.

Importance: Skin cancer is the most frequent cancer type. It remains unknown if and how screening programs can be organized in a cost-effective manner.

Objective: To compare the 2 screening strategies of systematic total-body examination (TBE) and lesion-directed screening (LDS), with a focus on the participation rate, detection rate, anxiety, and cost.

Nonablative fractional laser resurfacing for the treatment of hypertrophic scars: a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Nonablative fractional laser (NAFL) therapy is a noninvasive procedure that has been suggested as a treatment option for hypertrophic scars.

Objectives: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of 1540-nm NAFL therapy in the treatment of hypertrophic scars.

Materials And Methods: An intraindividual randomized controlled trial (RCT) with split lesion design and single-blinded outcome evaluations.

Origin, clinical presentation, and diagnosis of hypomelanotic skin disorders.

Hypomelanotic skin disorders are cutaneous pigmentary disorders characterized by a reduced melanin content in the skin that results in a lightening of the skin. Establishing the correct diagnosis for hypomelanotic skin disorders requires a good history, a detailed physical examination, the use of special lighting techniques, such as Wood's light, and sometimes a biopsy of the abnormally pigmented skin and the normally pigmented skin. This article focuses on the origin, clinical presentation, and diagnosis of acquired hypomelanotic skin disorders.

Cross-cultural inequivalence of dermatology-specific health-related quality of life instruments in psoriasis patients.

The dermatology life questionnaire index (DLQI) and the Skindex are the most commonly used dermatology-specific health-related quality of life (HRQOL) instruments. Although these tools are used in international surveys and clinical trials, the cross-cultural equivalence of their items has not been documented. We used differential item functioning (DIF), which is part of the Rasch model, to assess the impact of cultural background on the items of the DLQI and Skindex-29 and-17.

Topical pimecrolimus in the treatment of vitiligo.

Although the treatment of vitiligo has improved during the last decade, therapy is still not satisfactory for many patients. Recently topical calcineurin inhibitors were introduced in the treatment of atopic dermatitis. Considering the autoimmune hypothesis of vitiligo pathogenesis, the use of these topical calcineurin inhibitors seems reasonable.

Subjective and objective evaluation of noncultured epidermal cellular grafting for repigmenting vitiligo.

Background: Noncultured epidermal cell transplantation in vitiligo permits the coverage of relatively large areas without culturing cells.

Objective: To investigate the effectiveness of noncultured epidermal cell transplantation in treating stabilized vitiligo using objective and subjective evaluation methods.

Methods: Noncultured autologous melanocytes and keratinocytes were grafted in a hyaluronic-acid-enriched suspension on superficially laser-abraded vitiligo lesions in 40 patients with refractory stable vitiligo (30 with generalized and 10 with localized vitiligo).

Double-blind placebo-controlled study of autologous transplanted epidermal cell suspensions for repigmenting vitiligo.

Objectives: To investigate the efficacy of epidermal noncultured cellular grafting in patients with vitiligo and the role of postinflammatory, spontaneous, or UV-induced pigmentation in obtaining repigmentation.

Design: A prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study.

Setting: Ambulatory patients in an institutional practice.

Management of vitiligo patients and attitude of dermatologists towards vitiligo.

As vitiligo does not cause any physical impairment, it is often considered unimportant by physicians. Vitiligo patients repeatedly experience disinterest from the medical world regarding their skin problem. A questionnaire survey was used to assess the management of vitiligo patients and the attitude of dermatologists towards vitiligo in Belgium.

A new digital image analysis system useful for surface assessment of vitiligo lesions in transplantation studies.

So far there is no uniformity in the evaluation methods used in the assessment of treatment outcome in vitiligo studies. The ability to objectively measure surfaces of vitiligo lesions is important for both clinical practice and research. Our objective was to assess the reproducibility, accuracy, user-friendliness and time effectiveness of a new digital image analysis system for surface measurement of vitiligo lesions.

Evidence for an autoimmune pathogenesis of vitiligo.

Vitiligo is a depigmenting disorder characterized by the development of white patches in various distributions, which are due to the loss of melanocytes from the epidermis. A variety of arguments from clinical observations to research findings in human and animal models support the hypothesis of autoimmunity and are reviewed in this article. The association with autoimmune diseases and organ-specific autoantibodies is well known.

Bowen's disease of the nail.

We present a case of Bowen's disease of the nail bed in a 60-year-old male. This case should remind us to biopsy any chronic lesion of the nail in order to reduce the delay in diagnosis. Indeed Bowen's disease of the nail unit often presents as a clinically misleading 'benign' lesion.