Editor: Brian R. Gastman, MD
Sub-editor: Neilendu Kundu, MD
Publisher: Thieme – 251 pages, with 445 illustrations
Book Review by: Nano Khilnani
Melanoma is a tumor of melanin-forming cells that is sometimes malignant, or cancerous. Skin cancer killed 9,394 people in the United States in 2017 – in about a 2 to 1 men-women ratio: 6,239 men (64 percent) and 3,155 women (36 percent), according to a Wikipedia article. .
The other two types of skin cancer – basal cell carcinoma (BSC) and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) are known as non-melanoma skin cancers (NMSC).
More than 90 percent of skin cancers develop with exposure to ultraviolet radiation from the sun. Thinning of the ozone layer above the Earth is a contributing factor.
Another significant factor is the proliferation since the 1920s, of indoor artificial ‘tanning’ salons, often found in gyms, hotels, spas, and sports facilities, including vertical devices such as tanning booths and stand-up sun beds. Indoor tanning has caused numerous people to develop skin cancer. As of 2010, the U.S. had about 25,000 indoor tanning facilities.
A Wikipedia article cites a study spanning the five-year period 2007-2012 that showed that 45 percent of university students, 22 percent of adolescents, and 18 percent of adults had tanned themselves indoors in their previous year.
This book looks at malignant and non-malignant melanomas, including their prevention, detection, treatment, surgical options and other treatment modes, and management over time.
Thirty-two U.S.-based specialists in dermatology and oncology authored the 12 chapters of this book. They are experienced particularly in various types of skin cancers and with the relevant surgical, pharmacologic, and other treatment options The chapters are listed below to provide you an overview of this book:
- Prevention of Future Skin Cancer
- Clinical Detection of Skin Cancer
- Treatment of Squamous and Basal Cell Carcinoma of the Skin
- Surgical Treatment of Cutaneous Melanoma
- Treatment of Rare Skin Malignancies
- Mohs Micrographic Surgery’s Role in the Treatment of Skin Cancer
- Role of Radiotherapy in the Treatment of Skin Malignancies
- Surgical Implications of Systemic Therapy for Skin Cancer
- Common Reconstructive Techniques after Facial Skin Cancer Excision
- Operative Lymphadenectomy
- Role of Dermatopathology in the Surgical Management of Skin Cancer
- High-Risk Cutaneous Malignancies
To access and save your e-book, go to the inside front cover, scratch off the film, then go to: www.ebookstore.Thieme.com/register. Click on the My E-book link, select Redeem Access Code, then enter your access code to claim your e-book. You can then read your e-book online.
Video Contents:
- Cervicofacial Rotation Flap for a Cheek Defect
- Completion Inguinal Lymphadenectomy
- Multi-stage Nasal Defect Reconstruction
- Sentinel Node Biopsy
Check out the additional content online at www.MediaCenter.Thieme.com. Get your access code on the first page of your book, then click on the above link to register your copy.
Key features of this book include:
- Clinical insights on competition lymphadenectomy and sentinel node biopsy for melanoma: two topics rarely addressed in context with skin cancer
- Diagnosis and treatment of rare malignancies including Merkel cell carcinoma, dermato-fibrosarcoma protuberans, cutaneous angiosarcoma, and cutaneous leiomyosarcoma
- Surgical treatment of cutaneous malignant melanoma and other high-risk malignancies
- Treatment approaches for the two most common forms of skin cancer, respectively basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma
- The role of Mohs micrographic surgery and radiation in skin cancer treatment
- More than 440 high-quality illustrations, many of them being full-color photographs
A common undesirable result after excising a cancerous area on the face or other part of a head is an ugly scar. What to do to achieve a better result?
In chapter 9 – Common Reconstructive Techniques After Facial Skin Cancer Excision – authors Drs. Neilendu Kendu and Brian Gastman discuss o on pages 168-191 the options and solutions for various problems on different parts of the face, including the cheeks, chin, ears, eyelids, forehead, lips, the neck, and the nose.
They state in their Introduction: ”Skin cancer represents a diverse collection of pathology. Skin cancer is the most common cancer in the United States (read the 2017 fatality statistics we cite above) and it is estimated that 20 percent of Americans will develop at least one type of skin cancer in their lifetime.”
Facial surgeries often require combined work of several specialists such as dermatologists, plastic surgeons, otologists, otolaryngologists, otorhinolaryngologists, and ophthalmologists to achieve optimal results based on the preferences of the patients.
Discussions are provided in this chapter for different procedures for the facial components and a variety of situations and objectives. A sample flow chart is also presented which provides you further options after you decide ‘yes’ or ‘no’ and the different end results those decisions will take you to. Lots of step-by-step photos of actual procedures are shown to you to make your learning more effective.
A short Conclusion and a long list of References end this and other chapters. (Some students read these parts of a chapter first when they’re searching for something). This is an excellent text on skin cancer. All involved have done a great job in putting together this valuable resource.
Editors:
Brian R. Gastman, MD is Director of the Cleveland Clinic Foundation Melanoma Program, and Associate Professor of Surgery at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine in Cleveland, Ohio.
Sub-editor:
Neilendu Kundu, MD is Medical Director of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at Mercy Health Physicians in Cincinnati, Ohio.
