ASDS has taken a proactive approach in positively affecting the future of the specialty of dermatologic surgery by recommending research on Board-directed topics. Board-directed research data is intended to help promote dermatologic surgeons as innovators, foster public awareness of dermatologic surgeons as experts, support ASDS positions on patient safely and regulatory issues, and more. Evidence-based and comparative effectiveness research is called for as well. By facilitating research in specific areas, ASDS will be able to further position itself as a catalyst for key findings in dermatologic surgery, and you can play an integral role.
 

The ASDS Research Work Group encourages submission of well-conceived research projects that stimulate the advancement of the practice of dermatologic surgery, the invention of new technologies or that document the outstanding and high volume work of dermatologic surgeons. ASDS members are specifically encouraged to submit proposals in the areas of depth of training, scope of practice, safety and efficacy as well as research with specific relevance in:

• Board-directed research topics
• Evidence-based medicine
• Comparative efficacy research
• Quality studies
• Patient safety studies

This is a competitive award program for research projects.

Multiple applications from the same institution/practice may be submitted; however, only one application per institution/practice may potentially be accepted.

• The principal investigator must be an ASDS member.
• The research topic must be clinically or socioeconomically oriented to dermatologic surgery. See Board-Directed research topics (PDF).
• Research must be conducted in the United States or Canada and with sponsorship by a department or division of dermatology or other independent dermatologic-related oversight group or organization.
• The applicant/principal investigator must be physically and intellectually capable of performing the work.
• The applicant/principal investigator must be sure his/her institution or grant administrator approves him/her to accept the grant prior to submitting the application

The 2018 Cutting Edge Research Grant recipients and their research projects are:

• Dennis Kim, MD: Implementation of a melanoma risk stratification tool for targeted cancer screening.*
• Jeffrey Scott, MD: Valuation and Willingness to Pay for Complex Mohs Reconstruction*
• Bilal Fawaz, MD: The Effect of a Reconstruction Handout on Patient Satisfaction and Quality of Life in Dermatologic Surgery*
• Megan Shelton, MD: CAPABLE: A scoring system utilizing patient reported measures to evaluate patient experience following Mohs surgery*
• Aaron Mangold, MD: Prognostic Value of Inositol Polyphosphate 5-Phosphatase A Expression in Cutaneous Squamous Cell Carcinoma
• Adam Sutton, MD: Integration of Patient Reported Outcomes and Skin Cancer Treatment*
• Mariam Totonchy, MD: Defining Perineural Invasion in Cutaneous Squamous Cell Carcinoma
• Abigail Waldman, MD: Efficacy and Safety of a Nanofat-seeded Biological Scaffold in Healing Lower Limb Surgical Defects

*Indicates Board-directed research topic

Grant recipients for 2017 and their research projects include:

• Juliet F. Gibson, MD (UT Southwestern, Dallas, TX): Medical Spas in the United States: medical oversight, physician and patient perceptions, and associated litigation.*
• Jeffrey F. Scott, MD (University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center, OH): A skin cancer risk model for hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients.*
• Jeremy R. Etzkorn, MD (University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA): Evaluation of patient preferences for skin cancer treatment using choice-based conjoint analysis.*
• Wesley Yu, MD (University of California, San Francisco, CA): Validation of the English Basal and Squamous Cell Carcinoma Quality of Life (BaSQoL) Questionnaire and Application to Dermatologic Surgery.*
• Eric Sorenson, MD (UCLA Division of Dermatology, Los Angeles, CA) Early Treatment with Microneedling for Surgical Scars.*
• Thomas J. Knackstedt, MD (Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, OH): The Utility of Radiologic Imaging and Prognostic Significance of American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) Pathologic (T) Staging in Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Nail Apparatus.
• Bassel Mahmoud, MD, PhD (University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA): Fractional versus ablative Er:YAG laser in melanocyte transplantation surgery, a prospective randomized study with an objective evaluation.
• Diana Bolotin, MD (The University of Chicago, IL): The Impact of Drug Compounding Regulations on Dermatologic Practice.*

* denotes Board-directed research topics

Seven ASDS members will receive research grants as part of this competitive program that unites education and innovation to encourage and stimulate clinical research and the transfer of new technologies from the research settings to surgical practice. This year, $99,522 in grant money was awarded. Grant recipients and their research projects are:

• Ekama O. Carlson, MD, PhD (University of California, San Francisco): Incidence, Characteristics, Outcomes of Skin Cancer in Non-white Organ Transplant Recipients, and Recommendations for Routine Screening.
• Karen L. Connolly, MD (Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center): Assessment of Health-related Quality of Life in Patients with Localized Stage 0 and 1 Head and Neck Melanoma: Variations among Treatment Groups.*
• Sherrif F. Ibrahim, MD, PhD (University of Rochester): Fractionally Ablative Er:YAG Laser Resurfacing for Thermal Burn Scars, a Prospective Split-burn Cohort Study.
•  Joshua B. Kentosh, DO (Walter Reed National Military Medical Center): Microwave Ablation of Eccrine Glands as a Treatment of Hyperhidrosis in Amputees
•  Kachiu C. Lee, MD (Rhode Island Hospital): What's in Laser Hair Plume?
•  Desiree Ratner, MD (Mount Sinai Beth Israel): Evaluation of the Histochemical and Immunohistochemical Effects of Cetuximab in Cutaneous Squamous Cell Carcinoma.
•  Divya Srivastava, MD  (University of Texas Southwestern): Patient Satisfaction with Mohs Micrographic Surgery for the Treatment of Melanoma in Situ.*

* denotes Board-directed research topics

Ten ASDS members will receive research grants as part of this competitive program that unites education and innovation to encourage and stimulate clinical research and the transfer of new technologies from the research settings to surgical practice. This year, $96,000 in grant money was awarded. Grant recipients and their research projects include:

• Jerry D. Brewer, MD (Mayo Clinical Research): A Phase II Randomized Controlled Trial of Educational Modification Sessions and Sunless Tanner as a Method of Reducing the Incidence of Tanning Bed Use in Young Adults.
• Pooja Chitgopeker, MBChB (University of Iowa Department of Dermatology): 1550-nm Non-Ablative Laser (Fraxel) vs. Ablative 10,600-nm Carbon Dioxide (CO2) Fractional Laser in the Treatment of Surgical and Traumatic Scars: A Comparison Study on Efficacy, Treatment Regimen and Cost.*
• Conroy Chow, MD (University of California, San Francisco): Prospective Evaluation of Complications in Dermatologic Surgery Associated with Hypertension.
• Ian A. Maher, MD (Saint Louis University): Examining Body Image Concerns in Patients with Head and Neck Skin Cancer as well as Mohs Micrographic Surgery’s Role in Improving Body Image.
• Emily Newsom, MD (Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center/Weill Cornell Medical College): Modernizing the Mohs Consultation: Instituting a Video Module for Improved Patient Counseling and Satisfaction.
• Bichchau (Michelle) Thi Nguyen, MD (Tufts Medical Center): Preoperative Acetaminophen and Carbohydrate Loading to Reduce Pain and Improve Functional Status in Patients Undergoing Mohs Micrographic Surgery for Non-Melanoma Skin Cancers.*
• Jill S. Waibel, MD (Miami Dermatology and Laser Institute): Repigmentation of Hypopigmentation: Fractional Laser vs. Laser Assisted Delivery of Bimatoprost vs. Novel Epidermal Melanocyte Harvesting System.*
• Douglas Wu, MD (Cosmetic Laser Dermatology): A Randomized Evaluator-blind Trial Comparing Microfocused Ultrasound with Subsurface Monopolar Radiofrequency for Lifting and Tightening of the Neck.*
• Ashley Wysong, MD (University of Southern California): Integration of Patient Satisfaction, Functional Status and Quality of Life in Determining Appropriateness of Skin Cancer Treatment in Elderly Patients.*
• Yaohui Gloria Xu, MD, PhD (University of Wisconsin-Madison): Histologic Evaluation of Cutaneous SCC Debulk Specimens Prior to Mohs Micrographic Surgery and its Influence on SCC Staging.*

* denotes Board-directed research topics

Eight ASDS members will receive 2014 Cutting Edge Research Grants as part of this competitive program that unites education and innovation to encourage and stimulate clinical research and the transfer of new technologies from the research settings to surgical practice. This year, more than $80,000 in grant money was awarded. Grant recipients and their research projects include:

• Ali Damavandy, MD (Georgetown University Hospital): Intraoperative Immunostaining for Cytokeratin-7 during Mohs Micrographic Surgery for Extramammary Paget’s Disease
• Kathryn Lane, MD (University of California, Irvine): Daylight PDT
• David Pate, MD (Texas Tech University, Lubbock): Safety of Prefilled Buffered Lidocaine Syringes With and Without Epinephrine
• Anthony Rossi, MD (Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center): The Non-Physician Practice of Dermatology: A Current and Future Perspective
• Emily Stamell Ruiz, MD (Brigham & Women's Hospital): Skin Cancer Expenditure and Equity Analysis
• Faranak Kamangar, MD (University of California Davis, Sacramento): The Use of Microneedles with Topical Botulinum Toxin for Treatment of Palmar Hyperhidrosis
• Jane Y. Yoo, MD (Affiliated Dermatologist & Dermatologic Surgeons, P.A.): U.S. Healthcare Reform: Implications for Management of Skin Cancer

The Cutting Edge Research Grant Program unites education and innovation to encourage and stimulate clinical research and the transfer of new technologies from the research settings to surgical practice. Since 2000, the ASDS has awarded more than $1 million in clinical research funding in surgical oncology, lasers, neuromodulators, fillers, liposuction and other cosmetic procedures. This year, the following researchers were awarded funds to complete their studies:

• Jeremy A. Brauer, MD (Laser & Skin Surgery Center of New York): Evaluation of the Safety and Efficacy of Multiple Same Week Pulsed Dye Laser Treatments of Port Wine Stains
• Daniel P. Friedmann, MD (Cosmetic Laser Center, San Diego): A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study of the Effect of a High-Potency Topical Corticosteroid Following Sclerotherapy for Reticular Veins and Telangiectasias of the Lower Extremities
• Jennifer Gordon, MD (University of Texas, Southwestern Austin): Excimer Light Treatment for Lidiopathic Guttate Hypomelanosis: A Pilot Study
• Arisa E. Ortiz, MD (University of California, San Diego): Non-invasive Autofluorescent Imaging of Non-melanoma Skin Cancer Tumor Margins During Mohs Micrographic Surgery
• Amanda Raymond, MD (University of California, San Francisco): Melanoma Outcomes in Transplant Recipients with Pre-transplant Melanoma
• Razieh Soltani-Arabshahi, MD (University of Utah): Randomized Controlled Trial of 308 nm Excimer Laser for Treatment of Nail Psoriasis

The Cutting Edge Research Grant Program unites education and innovation to encourage and stimulate clinical research and the transfer of new technologies from the research settings to surgical practice. Since 2000, the ASDS has awarded more than $1 million in clinical research funding in surgical oncology, lasers, neuromodulators, fillers, liposuction and other cosmetic procedures. This year, the following researchers were awarded funds to complete their studies:

• Todd V. Cartee, MD, for “Impact of Early Post-Operative Water Exposure on Complications of Cutaneous Surgeries”
• Patrick M. Ellison, MD, for “A Prospective Multi-Center Characterization of Malignant Melanoma Treated with Mohs Micrographic Surgery”
• Jeremy R. Etzkorn, MD, for “Mohs Surgery for Melanoma Using MART-1: A Comparison of Head and Neck Lesions with Other Anatomic Locations”
• Allison M. Hanlon, MD, for “Examination of Clinical and Genetic Differences Between Atypical Fibroxanthoma and Undifferentiated Pleomorphic Sarcoma”
• Rajan Kulkarni, MD, PhD, for “Investigating Determinants of Pathogenesis in Keratoacanthomas and Cutaneous Squamous Cell Carcinomas”
• Thanh-Nga Tran, MD, PhD, for “Understanding Radiation Dermatitis - A Study Pilot”
• Nathalie C. Zeitouni, MD, for "Multimodal Image-guided planning for Treatment of Thick Nonmelanoma Skin Cancers."

The Cutting Edge Research Grant Program unites education and innovation to encourage and stimulate clinical research and the transfer of new technologies from the research settings to surgical practice. Since 2000, the ASDS has awarded more than $1 million in clinical research funding in surgical oncology, lasers, neuromodulators, fillers, liposuction and other cosmetic procedures. This year, the following researchers were awarded funds to complete their studies:

• Yoon-Soo Cindy Bae-Harboe, MD, for “Collagenase Followed by Compression for the Treatment of Earlobe Keloids”
• Omar Ibrahimi, MD, PhD, for “Physician and Layman Perceptions of Skin Cancers and Cutaneous Surgery”
• Maria Lina M. Tsoukas, MD, PhD, for “Treatment of Actinic Keratoses in Healthy and Immunosuppressed Patients: A Randomized Split Face Comparison of Sequential 5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) and 5-Aminolevulinic Acid Photodynamic Therapy (ALA-PDT) to 5-FU or ALA PDT”
• Gagik Oganesyan, MD, PhD, for “Evaluation of Surgical Smoke and Its Management in Dermatologic Surgery”
• Arisa E. Ortiz, MD, for “A Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Study of the 1320 nm Nd:YAG Laser for Treatment of Onychomycosis”  
• Raja Sivamani, MD, for “Photodynamic Therapy”
• Jill S. Waibel, MD, for “Treatment of Hypertrophic Scars Using Laser Assisted Corticosteroid Delivery VS. Laser Assisted 5-Floururacil Delivery”  

2000
Phillip M. Williford, MD
Wake Forest University School of Medicine
"Non-Melanoma Skin Cancer Expenditure Study"

2001
Elizabeth Tanzi, MD
The Washington Institute for Dermatologic Laser Surgery
"Comparison of a 1540 nm Diode Laser and a 1320 nm Nd:YAG Laser in the Treatment of Atrophic Facial Scars"

2001
Murad Alam, MD
Skin Care Physicians of Chestnut Hill
"Systematic Measurement of Patient Satisfaction and Psychological Well-being After Cosmetic Dermatologic Surgery"

2003
John Strasswimmer, MD, PhD
Massachusetts General Hospital
"Develop OCT as a Non-Invasive Imaging Modality for Improved Basal Cell Carcinoma Management"

2003
John S. Rhee, MD
Medical College of Wisconsin
"Defining Quality of Life in Nonmelanoma Skin Cancer"

2004
Fiona O'Reilly Zwald, MD
Emory University
"Outcomes Analysis in Solid Organ Transplant Recipients: Assessing the Benefit of an Integrated Dermatology Service within the Transplant Center and Health-related Quality of Life Following the Development of Skin Cancer Post-Transplantation"

2004
Naomi Lawrence, MD
Coriell Institute for Medical Research
"A Tissue Engineering Approach to Autologous Fat Transfer: In Vitro Differentiation of Adipose Stromal Cells and Optimization of Adipose Tissue Disassociation"

2005
Roger Lo, MD, PhD
UCLA
"TGF-beta Signaling in the Fibroblastic Compartment during Melanoma Initiation and Progression"

2005
Chrysalyne Schmults, MD
University of Pennsylvania
"Neurotropism versus Perineural Invasion of Cutaneous Squamous Cell Carcinoma:  Effects on Recurrence Rates and Mortality"

2007
Iltefat H. Hamzavi, MD
Henry Ford Hospital
"Prospective Controlled Study of the Efficacy of Nd:YAG for Hidradenitis Suppurativa"