July is Skin Cancer Awareness month. According to the American Cancer Society (ACS), Skin Cancer is the most common type of cancer in the United States. However, early detection can help doctors and patients treat skin cancer effectively.
The ACS outlines the possible signs and symptoms of melanoma, which is a common type of skin cancer. The “ABCDE” rule serves as an easy-to-follow and easy-to-remember guide in recognizing the signs of melanoma spots on one’s skin. Individuals are advised to follow-up with a doctor if they recognize skin spots with any of the following features:
- A is for Asymmetry:One half of a mole or birthmark does not match the other.
- B is for Border:The edges are irregular, ragged, notched, or blurred.
- C is for Color:The color is not the same all over and may include shades of brown or black, or sometimes with patches of pink, red, white, or blue.
- D is for Diameter:The spot is larger than 6 millimeters across (about ¼ inch – the size of a pencil eraser), although melanomas can sometimes be smaller than this.
- E is for Evolving:The mole is changing in size, shape, or color.
Additional warning signs include:
- A sore that does not heal
- Spread of pigment from the border of a spot into surrounding skin
- Redness or a new swelling beyond the border of the mole
- Change in sensation, such as itchiness, tenderness, or pain
- Change in the surface of a mole – scaliness, oozing, bleeding, or the appearance of a lump or bump
Dermatologists are increasingly seeing the value of utilizing a virtual care platform to both speak with concerned individuals and to also engage their ongoing patients from the comfort and convenience of the individuals’ homes. Individuals can receive timely diagnoses and ongoing specialty care from appropriate specialists without needing to expend time and travel costs to reach a dermatologist’s office. Also, primary care physicians and hospitals can also use the platform to access dermatologies for emergency virtual consults if an appropriate specialist is not within close proximity.
Virtual visits allow dermatologists to expand their reach by providing more of their services to more of the patient population. According to one of the authors of Socioeconomic and Geographic Barriers to Dermatology Care in Urban and Rural U.S. Populationspublished in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, rural communities of the US do not have nearby access to dermatologists as only 1.5% – 10% of dermatologists practice in rural areas, despite 28% of the total US population residing in these communities. On the flipside,40% of dermatologists practice in the 100 densest areas of the country.The lack of convenient access may cause rural patients to delay or decline appropriate care, which may lead to treatment delays and disease progression. Scheduling an appointment is also a challenge; the average wait time for an appointment in rural areas was found to be 4.5 weeks for new patients and 3.1 weeks for established patients. Traveling to an appointment is also a challenge for rural patients. As the author indicated in a recent interview, “studies have found that the farther that patients travel to reach their diagnosing providers, the more advanced their stage at melanoma diagnosis is likely to be. In dermatologic diseases like melanoma, these delays can have significant impacts on mortality.”
A virtual care communication platform can assist in closing the geography and providing the specialty care needed. Virtual care can lead to better outcomes and optimize available time and resources for all involved.