Updates from the British Association of Dermatologists 82nd Annual Meeting, 9-12 July 2002, Edinburgh, U.K.

Chronic actinic dermatitis: A retrospective analysis of 44 cases referred to an Australian photobiology clinic

“…In addition, the presence of pre‐existing widespread, often airborne, contact dermatitis to exogenous sensitizer or photosensitizer may be a predisposing factor in CAD 13,14,17 . It has been proposed that compositae allergy or photoallergy may simply be a result of the ability of airborne antigens to penetrate compromised skin 22 . The cutaneous immune system in CAD patients may be enhanced sufficiently by repeated exposures to airborne and other allergens, and the ageing skin contributes to easier penetration and slower removal of exogenous antigens.…”

“…The choice of treatment in CAD is individually tailored and is influenced by the degree of photosensitivity and the causative action spectrum (Table 4). Despite the variety of available treatments for CAD, azathioprine is the only therapeutic agent that has been evaluated in a double‐blind placebo‐controlled trial, while most of the other treatments, including topical corticosteroids, PUVA and cyclosporin have been reported in anecdotal cases or small open series 22 . All CAD patients should be advised regarding careful avoidance of exposure to UV radiation and to relevant contact allergens.…”

Surgical treatment of melanoma

“…In contrast, the regional lymph nodes were the main sites of metastases more often in men (54·4%) than in women (46%). These sex‐specific differences in metastatic pathways may be related to sex‐specific differences in the anatomical locations of the primary tumours 59 . Direct distant metastases occurred significantly later (median 25 months) than direct regional lymph node metastases (median 16 months) and satellite and in‐transit metastases (median 17 months).…”

“…While the prognosis of thin melanomas tends to be better than thick melanomas, even thin melanomas do metastasize 59–61 . One of the more obvious reasons is that the original histological depth reported by the pathologist may not have been the greatest depth of the tumour.…”

Narrower Surgical Margins Might be Sufficient in Invasive Horizontal Growth Phase Melanoma

“…Further advantages of the procedure are of a psychological and economic nature. Although our follow-up period was relatively short, it should be taken into account that the median time for primary thin melanomas to relapse has been reported to be 23 months 11 • Another study 12 recommended that follow-up for thin lesions does not have to exceed three years, as the risk of recurrence is very low. However, other studies have shown that thin melanomas may recur relatively late compared with thicker lesions 13 -15 • For these reasons our results must be considered preliminary and need further confirmation with a longer follow-up.…”