Caring for more than 3,000 patients each year, physicians at the Josephine Ford Cancer Center in Michigan apply an interdisciplinary team approach to the diagnosis and management of skin cancer. The team includes dermatologists, pathologists, medical oncologists and radiation oncologists with subspecialty interest and experience in all types of skin cancers, including melanomas, basal cell and squamous cell cancers, cutaneous T-cell lymphomas and Kaposi's sarcoma.
Surgery is first-line treatment for basal cell carcinomas, squamous cell carcinomas and melanomas. In addition to conventional surgical excision, Josephine Ford Cancer Center dermatologists also are experienced in Mohs surgery, a microscopically controlled surgery to remove skin cancer. Depending on tumor type and stage, adjuvant radiation therapy or chemotherapy may be part of the treatment plan. The skin cancer team works with other Cancer Center specialists as needed.
Physicians with a special interest in mycosis fungoides (cutaneous T-cell lymphoma) treat more than 20 new cases a year. The Josephine Ford Cancer Center is one of only two centers in Michigan to offer comprehensive treatment for the disease, including phototherapy, chemotherapy, total skin electron-beam radiation, biologic therapy and photopheresis.
A pigmented lesion clinic, held weekly at Henry Ford Hospital, offers clinical examination and evaluation of melanocytic, atypical or dysplastic nevi in children and adults.
Through their participation in clinical trials sponsored by the Southwest Oncology Group, Cancer Center dermatologists can offer patients the newest, potentially more effective treatments for melanoma. Current protocols include studies of adjuvant therapy for high-risk melanoma and innovative chemotherapy regimens for metastatic malignant disease.
For more information about sunscreen and protection, please visit the American Academy of Dermatology website at www.aad.org.
