As we shake off the remnants of the Covid Pandemic, we’re ready to get back to normal – whatever “normal” may be. It’s time to dive into the good stuff! Finally! Make up for lost time! Hang with friends!  Have some fun! Getting a skin screening may not be on the top of that to-do-list. But stay with me for just a minute and I’m going to tell you why it should be; why giving up 10 minutes on a sunny Saturday can make all the difference in your happy, healthy future. It’s all about self care. Because sun care IS self care. 

A new study just released found globally, melanoma diagnosis is expected to surge by 50% in the next 18 years – with a 68% increase in deaths.  Patients who have cancer treatment delayed by even one month can have a six to 13 percent higher risk of dying. 

Since melanoma in adolescents and young adults is especially aggressive, that means early detection through screening is more important than ever. It is essential. Remove the mole – remove the risk of melanoma. The key is melanoma prevention; and it’s as easy as three basic steps:

• Wear sunscreen SPF30
• Wear UPF 50 clothing
• Get an annual Skin Screening with a Dermatologist.

Can’t get into a dermatologist? We’ve got you! At Claire Marie Foundation we are passionate about your skin and thrilled to bring you another day of Free Skin Screenings on May 7th for anyone 13-29 years old! 

Think it none of this applies to you? Ask the young people who were screened at our April 2nd CMF Free Skin Screenings. Nearly 15% were found to need biopsy for suspicion of melanoma. At one location alone, that number surged to 33%.   By taking time to find atypical moles early, they removed the risk of melanoma and can look forward to a healthy safe summer!

There are still plenty of appointments available at our CMF Screening Events May 7th at Johns Hopkins Dermatology at Greenspring Station, Mercy Medical Center Baltimore and SCSPhysicians in Lutherville.  Just pick a location, call and set up the appointment! It’s that easy! Free to anyone 13-29 years old!  All the info is right here:  May 2022 SCREENING DAY

Still need a little nudge? Okay, look at it this way; consider it beach prep! Remember – #awarenesssaveslives We look forward to seeing you there!

Let’s make one thing clear; the words “just” and “ cancer” should never be linked in the same sentence.  But due to the fact that basal cell or squamous cell carcinomas are 98 percent treatable and unlikely to spread through the body, many people think melanoma is “just” skin cancer and thus tend to delay having a dermatologist check changes in their skin or moles.  That misnomer can be deadly. Melanoma is not like other skin cancers. It is a beast within itself; extremely aggressive, moving beyond the skin, often spreading to other parts of the body. Consider this: melanoma is the cause of most skin cancer deaths, claiming one life every 50 minutes.

The risk is especially high in adolescents and young adults where melanoma is more aggressive and invasive than in older patients. https://bit.ly/37HGxyH.

The Dana-Farber Cancer Institute found if a young person develops any form of skin cancer – it is almost always melanoma.In fact diagnosis of melanoma in adolescents and young adults has jumped 253% in the last 40 years.  Melanoma doesn’t wait for COVID. It doesn’t wait until for a convenient time in your schedule.  Early detection is the key. Listen to that wise voice in your head. If you notice any changes in your skin, make an appointment with a qualified dermatologist immediately. Learn more about the differences between skin cancer and melanoma from Dermatologist and Claire Marie Medical Advisor, Dr. Diane Orlinsky, M.D., F.A.A.D. https://vimeo.com/470036400

Take care of your skin. Take care of you. Be aware; because awareness saves lives.

Pregnancy is such a joyful and stressful time! An expectant mother has so many things to consider in preparing for the arrival of her new little one – melanoma is typically is not among them. But amid the visits to the obstetrician, don’t forget to set time aside to see your dermatologist.  Hormonal changes, genetics and a suppressed immune system can create the perfect storm in the development of melanoma in pregnant women.https://cle.clinic/2X0R0hP

Jamie Martell, a young mom in Maryland was blindsided by her diagnosis.  She generously shares her story in the hopes that it will raise awareness of the unforeseen risk to young moms. 

“I was 27 years old – newly married to the man of my dreams and pregnant with our first child. A boy! All of those beautiful wonders of life I had imagined were unfolding right before my eyes.

I had heard of melanoma before, but I can assure you that I never took it seriously or thought it was something that could happen to me. To me, it was just something that happened to older people that got a a little too much sun throughout their life. 

   I was around 5 months pregnant when I noticed a mole on my thigh start to drastically change. It went from something I hardly noticed to something I could no longer ignore. My husband encouraged me for weeks to get it checked out and thankfully I finally listened. It was stage IIb Melanoma – which meant it was aggressive and growing rapidly. I was quickly scheduled for a surgery to remove the cancer and some surrounding skin. We then received the news that the surrounding skin was free of Melanoma cells and so at that point we thought I was in the clear. 

A month after delivering my son we found out how very wrong I was. Not only did we discover that Melanoma isn’t always just something you can “cut out”, but it also was thriving off of the hormones from my pregnancy

The cancer had very quickly spread to multiple lymph nodes within my body and my oncologist revealed that another surgery wouldn’t cut it. I would need to start a systemic treatment called immunotherapy.

A couple of years later, after a lot of trial and error, we were thrilled that we had finally found success in a treatment! However, a second pregnancy brought the Melanoma roaring right back into my world. I was forced to deliver our daughter (Maisie) 6 weeks early in order to start yet another treatment. 

I am so passionate that everybody should see a dermatologist annually, but especially passionate that women should see a dermatologist during their pregnancy. The hormonal changes in your body during this time can result in changes to your skin.

Something so easy and simple to do could save losing precious moments with your children, it could save the pain your family endures as they wish they could take it all on for you, it could save you from surgery after surgery and treatment after treatment…it could ultimately save your life!”

Jamie Martell: Wife, Mother, Melanoma Survivor

Congratulations to Allison, “Allie”  McDavid, the 2020 Recipient of the Claire Marie Scholarship in Arts & Design!

 The Notre Dame Preparatory Senior got the news via NDP art teacher Anne Walker while isolated at her home, but the lack of fanfare did not diminish her excitement! Allie begins her studies this fall at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio where she will immerse herself in Interior and Architectural Designs.

Every year since 2015, the $5,000 award is given to a graduating senior from Claire’s alma mater, Notre Dame Preparatory School in Towson Maryland to support the recipient’s desire to study design arts in college. It was a dream of Claire’s to launch a career in interior design and we are thrilled to see other young women share the same passion and excitement. Each year, our winners are selected by an exquisite team of noted design professionals from across the country! They bring expertise in fine arts, theatrical, animation, interiors, photography and film. Our thanks to our CMF Scholarship Committee: Katie Fico with Walt Disney Animation Studio, Los Angeles based Interior Designer Stacey Vuduris, Theatrical Designer Timothy Swiss of Los Angeles, Photographer Susannah Dowell of Colorado and Maryland’s First Lady and MICA Educator Advocate, Mrs. Yumi Hogan. 

Allie said her phone lit up with excited messages from her classmates when the announcement was made! “What an honor it is to be able to represent such beautiful young women and the inspiring Claire Marie Foundation.” 

Allie joins past recipients who have studied in Claire’s memory at University of Southern California, Rollins College, University of Virginia and Savannah College of Arts & Design. 

Allie, good luck on your academic and professional adventure! We can’t wait to see the joy, color and beauty you bring to the world!

In this era of COVID19 it can be challenging to manage the common practice of healthcare. Thus, many routine medical concerns, including dermatology screenings for skin cancer and melanoma, are on hold for most people.

In an attempt to manage their own health as best they can, some patients may turn to smartphone apps to assess a suspicious skin lesion. That is not a good idea!  A recent study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association ( JAMA) found these leading apps offer false results. SkinVision and SkinScan, the two most popular apps, were both missing melanomas and offering false positive readings. Furthermore, 45% of the time, the images couldn’t even be interpreted by the apps.  It should be noted that the FDA has not yet approved these apps for the diagnosis of melanoma.

What should you do if you can’t get an appointment with your dermatologist and you have a suspicious skin lesion?  We reached out to Claire Marie Foundation Medical Advisor, Dr. Meg R. Gerstenblith, M.D., a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Dermatology at Case Western Reserve University and a Clinical Associate in the Department of Dermatology at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. Here is what Dr. Gerstenblith had to say:

“The past few months, our lives have changed dramatically.  Each one of us has been impacted by COVID19, even if we haven’t personally been sick.  Routine medical visits, including skin exams by dermatologists, have been pushed back.  We won’t fully appreciate the effects of these delays, although in the context of cancer screening and cancer care, some hypothesize that the impact will be felt for years to come.https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanonc/article/PIIS1470-2045(20)30243-6/fulltext

However, many dermatologists’ offices are open for telemedicine visits and urgent concerns, including the diagnosis and treatment of aggressive skin cancers. 

In a typical telemedicine visit, a patient will upload photos of a suspicious lesion (or lesions) and, during the video visit, the dermatologist will review the photos and obtain critical history information from the patient with regard to how long the patient has noticed the lesion, whether or not it is symptomatic, and whether or not it has changed in any respect. 

With this information, dermatologists can usually come up with a sound plan for that patient.  If the dermatologist is concerned, most are be able to see the patient in the office for the appropriate biopsy or excision of a suspicious lesion.  Our surgeons are performing skin cancer surgery as well.  We are doing our best to avoid delays in diagnosing and treating potentially aggressive skin cancers.  For some skin cancers that are not very aggressive, such as a superficial basal cell carcinoma, dermatologists may recommend waiting to treat those since they are highly unlikely to grow or spread.  

For the patient with the suspicious lesion, that patient should contact his/her dermatologist and set up a telemedicine visit.  The dermatologist can then advise the patient on whether or not he/she needs to be seen in person for an examination or a biopsy. 

If that patient’s dermatologist is not open or not conducting telemedicine visits, there are likely other offices that are open in that patient’s community–and the patient should seek out another dermatologist or speak to their primary care doctor to get assistance reaching a dermatologist. 

Most dermatology groups within academic hospitals are open during this COVID19 pandemic as are many private practices.  We would not recommend using any of the lesion detection apps, since studies have shown these to be ineffective.”

April Moran, LCSW-C is a Cognitive Behavioral Therapist who specializes in the treatment of anxiety disorders in adolescents, adults and families. As a member of the Claire Marie Foundation Medical Advisory, she offers this insight for young cancer patients – and anyone seeking help in coping with the uncertainty that is COVD-19.

This week is Adolescent and Young Adult Cancer Awareness Week, yet this year the focus for any adolescent or young adult is different.  Their focus might be on how their treatment has been interrupted and or put on hold due to the COVID 19 crisis.  Expected anxiety about their cancer diagnosis has been replaced with anxiety about access to treatment.  The thing is, cancer doesn’t quiet down or go to sleep just because hospitals and treatment centers are either now a place of high risk for our youth or shut down all together.  It’s as if a banner saying “I’m living with uncertainty x10” is flying over them.  Read on to get some answers.

• Look at your thoughts.  Finding a way to accept this current COVID situation and manage our feelings of powerlessness without falling into despair is of immediate importance right now.  We don’t get to choose what is happening, but we get to choose how we respond to it.  When we feel powerless, our power is always in how we respond.  This concept drew me to cognitive therapy as a young therapist.  Our thoughts directly create our emotions.  If you have the thought “this is awful, and I can’t handle it”, you will undoubtably feel anxious and afraid.  If you change your thought to “I’ve had lots of challenges before.  I don’t like this uncertainty, but I’m finding ways to handle it one day at a time”, you will feel less anxious and possibly hopeful.  As someone battling cancer, the feeling of hope is important to your physical and mental health.

• Create Meaning and Practice Gratitude.  One of the ways we can choose to cope is to do things that create meaning.  Martin Seligman is a therapist I have long admired.  He talks about how when we pursue meaning (starting a peer support group) and connect (reaching out to other adolescents and young adults with cancer to check on them) we will experience positive emotion.  This is the control we do have.  As a therapist,  I often ask my young clients going through times where they experience high levels of powerlessness to practice gratitude.  This video by Dr. Sood best illustrates what I’m talking about.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZZ0zpUQhBQ

• Do something you are good at.  Another important way to manage during this time and give you a sense of control is to do something you are good at once a day.  It could be anything from yoga to making others laugh.  You will feel a quick surge in your mood.

• Set up “worry time”. Sometimes despite all efforts – worry and “what if” thoughts seep into our minds.  Sometimes it feels impossible not to worry.  Set up a “worry time” for about 15 minutes a day at the same time, every day.  This is called containment and will help you let go of your worry and stay more present in your day when it’s not “worry time”.  When worries inevitably come, acknowledge them, do your best to remind yourself about worry time and shift your attention to connecting with others, distracting yourself with a movie or doing anything that brings meaning.  This will help you stay more present and connected in the moment.  

• Connect-even if you don’t feel like it.  Last but probably most important, try to virtually connect with others.  Group time is essential and helps everyone feel that connection to others – that need to be included.  Being “part of a tribe” goes back to early survival and not getting eaten by wildlife.  It was physically safe to be part of a tribe.  Evolution is slow and our brains still register physical danger even if the danger now is emotional.  Right now, with the need to isolate, we are having a very high stress response to being alone and apart from our tribe.  Teens and young adults with cancer need to create ways to connect more than ever.  

There will be a time when things return to “normal”.  Your treatment will get back on track and you will find new ways to adapt for now.  Having hope gives you the courage to survive.  Take this one moment at a time, one hour at a time, one day at a time.

For more information or to contact April Moran, explore her website

April Moran, LCSW-C

http://www.anxietycbt.com