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New Approaches to Managing AKs and Cutaneous Cancers

New Approaches to Managing AKs and Cutaneous Cancers

- Seminar Highlights -

A CME-certified supplement to Skin & Allergy News.

This supplement was supported by an educational grant from Graceway Pharmaceuticals, LLC, and jointly sponsored by University of Louisville Continuing Health Sciences Education and Global Academy for Medical Education, an Elsevier business.

This activity is developed from scientific information presented at the 2010 Skin Disease Education Foundation?s 34^th Annual Hawaii Dermatology Seminar, a continuing medical education (CME) conference convened in Big Island, Hawaii, February 14-19, 2010.

Faculty
Topic Highlights
Target Audience
Educational Needs
Learning Objectives
Disclosure
Accreditation

? Faculty/Faculty Disclosures
? Topic Highlights

To view the supplement, click the image above.

Faculty

Brian Berman, MD, PhD

Professor of Dermatology and Internal Medicine

Department of Dermatology and Cutaneous Surgery

University of Miami Miller School of Medicine

Miami, FL

Ashfaq A. Marghoob, MD

Associate Professor of Dermatology

State University of New York at Stony Brook

Associate Attending Physician

Memorial Sloan-Kettering Skin Cancer Center

Hauppage, NY

Topic Highlights

Actinic Keratosis and Squamous Cell Carcinoma: Advances in Nonsurgical Treatment
Melanoma: A Brief Update on Clinical Implications of New Data

Target Audience

The target audience for this educational supplement is dermatologists and other health care professionals involved in the treatment of patients with actinic keratosis (AK), nonmelanoma skin cancer (NMSC), and malignant melanoma.

Educational Needs

The prevalence of both NMSC and cutaneous malignant melanoma continues to increase. Prompt diagnosis and treatment of both NMSC?that is, squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) and basal cell carcinoma (BCC)?and malignant melanoma are crucial to preservation of tissue, prevention of disfigurement and loss of function, prevention of metastatic disease, and long-term survival. Although BCC, an NMSC, rarely metastasizes, it can invade the deeper cutaneous tissues and, eventually, bone, causing considerable soft tissue and bone damage and requiring significant surgical excision; when lesions occur on the face, both the disease and its surgical treatment can be catastrophically disfiguring. AK is a skin condition that, without treatment, may progress to Bowen?s disease (SCC in situ) or invasive SCC in an estimated 10% of cases; unfortunately, it is not possible at this time to determine which AK lesions are likely to progress, so treatment of AK is recommended. Clinicians must be continually updated on advances in understanding the pathophysiology of these diseases, as well as the results of research on new uses for existing agents and the promising, emerging and potential therapies that are being investigated.

Learning Objectives

By reading and studying this supplement, participants in this activity should be prepared to:

Summarize the updated information presented regarding the agents that are currently available for treating AK (ie, diclofenac, 5-fluorouracil, imiquimod, and photodynamic therapy)
Describe and better recognize in clinical practice outlier lesions (also know as ?ugly ducklings?) as potential markers of malignant melanoma
Explain the advances in understanding the pathophysiology of NMSC and malignant melanoma
Discuss the new and emerging modalities that hold promise for effective treatment of AK, Bowen?s disease, invasive SCC, and malignant melanoma.

Disclosure

As a sponsor accredited by the ACCME, the CHSE must ensure balance, independence, objectivity, and scientific rigor in all its sponsored educational activities. All faculty participating in this CME activity were asked to disclose the following:

? Names of proprietary entities producing health care goods or services?with the exemption of nonprofit or government organizations and non-health-related companies?with which they or their spouse/partner have a relevant financial relationship or have had a relevant financial relationship within the past 12 months. For this purpose, we consider the relevant financial relationships of a spouse/partner of which they are aware, to be their financial relationships.

? Describe what they or their spouse/partner received (salary, honorarium, etc).

? Describe their role.

? Declare no relevant financial relationships.

Dr. Berman has been a consultant for Graceway, Peplin, and PharmaDerm. He has also been a speaker for Graceway and PharmaDerm.

Dr. Marghoob has nothing to disclose.

CHSE Committee Members have no relevant financial relationships with any commercial interests: Carolyn Burns, MD; Dedra DeBerry, MA; Joyce Dunagan, MA, MSLS; Linda H. Freeman, DNS, RN; Paul Fultz; Terri Gipson, MSL; Ruth Greenberg, PhD; Lucy Juett, MS; Irene Litvan, MD; Loretta Maldaner; Mike Mansfield, DMD; Ashlee Melendez, RN, BSN; Lesa J. Pfitzer, MD; Robert Sexton, MD; Uldis Streips, PhD; Kathy M. Vincent, MD; Lori Wagner, MD; Stephen Wheeler, MD; and Sharon Whitmer, EdD.

Joanne Still, Shirley Jones, Sylvia Reitman, Global Academy for Medical Education, and the Planning Committee: No relevant financial relationships with any commercial interests.

CME Reviewer

Joseph F. Fowler, Jr, MD, Clinical Professor of Dermatology, University of Louisville, Kentucky, has been a consultant for Galderma, Graceway, Hyland?s, Johnson & Johnson, Quinnova, Ranbaxy, Shire, Stiefel, Triax, and Valeant. He has been a speaker for Galderma, Medicis, Ranbaxy, Shire, Stiefel, UCB, and Valeant. He has also been an investigator for Abbott, Allerderm, Allergan, Amgen, Astellas, Centocor, Coria, Dermik, Dow, Galderma, Genentech, Johnson & Johnson, Medicis, Novartis, Quinnova, Shire, Stiefel, Taisho, Taro, and 3M.

Accreditation

This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the Essential Areas and Policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) through the joint sponsorship of the University of Louisville School of Medicine Continuing Health Sciences Education (CHSE) and the Global Academy for Medical Education, LLC, an Elsevier business. CHSE is accredited by the ACCME to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

The CHSE designates this educational activity for a maximum of 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit?. Physicians should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Term of Approval: August 2010 ? September 2012.