Duke Dermatology
e a c h i n g , I n v e s t i g a t i n g a n d C a r i n g
e a c h i n g , I n v e s t i g a t i n g a n d C a r i n g
Dear Duke Derm Friends and Colleagues,
Thank you for taking the time to check out our annual newsletter As Duke celebrates its Centennial, we will also reflect on our past accomplishments as well as look forward to the future As you read this newsletter, you will notice that our core missions are still on a growth trajectory with expansion of the clinical footprint; research landscape; education efforts; and equity, diversity and inclusion endeavors
To further our alumni engagement, connecting the past with the future, this year we will move our Cal Club-sponsored “reunion” from the AAD to the same weekend as our Pinnell Annual Symposium As usual we will be having an exciting panel of researchers present cutting edge science, linked with clinical translational talks, and ending with the Cal Club reunion-reception
I look forward to seeing you at Pinnell –CalClub In the meantime, please enjoy reading this newsletter and following us on our social media (see back cover for handles)
Sincerely yours,
Suephy C Chen Chair, Department of DermatologyWelcome to the Duke Dermatology Residency Education Corner! In this section, we will highlight different aspects of our residency program to keep you informed about current events, changes, and unique educational opportunities. In this issue, we will focus on postresidency fellowship matches and fellowship opportunities within our department.
As most of you already know, there are 3 main fellowship opportunities after dermatology residency These include Dermatopathology, Pediatric Dermatology, and Micrographic Surgery & Dermatologic Oncology (MSDO) or Mohs fellowship
Over the last 2 years, four of our residents successfully matched into Mohs fellowships Dr Elaine Otchere matched into Mohs fellowship in December 2022 at the University of Iowa under the leadership of Dr Marta VanBeek and is
currently completing her fellowship year Drs Olivia Jew, Chandler Rundle, and Kim Breglio matched into Mohs fellowships in December 2023 at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill under the leadership of Dr Brad Merritt, the University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center under the leadership of Dr Jeremy Bordeaux, and the University of Michigan under the leadership of Dr. Christopher Bichakjian, respectively. They will be starting their fellowships in July 2024.
Duke offers a Dermatopathology Fellowship through the Department of Pathology directed by Dr Rami Al-Rohil Our current dermatopathology fellow is Dr Rayan Saade who graduated from the American University of Beirut Medical School, completed his pathology residency at Albany Medical College, and then completed a surgical pathology fellowship at MD Anderson and a molecular genetic fellowship at Emory University before joining us at Duke in July 2023
Duke Dermatology is excited to announce the start of a new ACGME accredited Pediatric Dermatology Fellowship under the direction of Drs Neil Prose and Rabina Walsh We matched our first pediatric dermatology fellow, Dr Alexis Tracy, in November 2023 Dr Tracy is currently completing her dermatology residency at New York Medical College and is their Chief Resident She attended the University of
Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio for medical school and did her internship in internal medicine at the University of California San Diego Dr Tracy will join Duke as a pediatric dermatology fellow in the summer of 2024
We congratulate our residents and fellows on their accomplishments We are excited for their contributions to dermatology and for the growth of our educational programs We would love to hear your ideas on how we can continue to improve our teaching and fellowship opportunities
Dr Rodriguez Homs, one of our third year residents, recently shared with us her thoughts on becoming a dermatologist, her training at Duke, and a very fun fact about her
Tell us about the road that brought you to Duke Dermatology.
I first came to Duke immediately after graduating from college I did a master's program in Masters of Biomedical Sciences for a year I was part of the first class and have known I wanted to stay at Duke ever since Throughout my medical training at Duke, I saw the dedication, passion, joy, and love the attendings/faculty had towards teaching I had encountered the most incredible people throughout my years of training in many subspecialties, so when I rotated through Duke Dermatology, I knew it would not be any different I even stayed for my Internal Medicine year because Duke's culture and l h d
During my sophomore year at the University of Michigan, I realized I wanted to pursue a medical career. I grew up with parents who were both physicians and saw how much dedication, passion, and enjoyment they had in their jobs. In college, I had chosen to pursue a degree in chemical engineering but realized I did not have the passion and joy for the field I could not see myself in a long-term career in engineering, and I am so glad I made the switch!
While in medical school, I enjoyed (almost) all my rotations I quickly realized the hospital and OR were not my happy places, so I knew I wanted to pursue a career primarily in the outpatient setting I first rotated through Dermatology during my third year of medical school and saw the diversity of conditions and treatment options Dermatology offers It was impressive that in one day, we were doing skin checks, and acne visits in addition to ordering biologics, infusions, surgeries, and injectables There is such a vast array of procedures and medical treatments for skin diseases, and I was completely hooked I feel so blessed to have found the dedication, passion, and enjoyment in my job that my parents have had for years
Duke has such a special place in my heart The culture at Duke is one of values, dedication, trust, and respect When rotating, I was especially impressed with the diversity of interests each faculty member has. I felt very involved in patient care from my early years in training. Duke Dermatology has a supportive and engaging educational environment. I knew I wanted to be a part of if I was given the opportunity. I have been lucky to stay for so many years!
The most satisfying aspects of my training at Duke have been the education I have received and the community I have made As mentioned above, the faculty at Duke are invested in each resident's learning and growth. I have felt so fortunate to be a part of a program that has approachable staff ready to answer any question. The collaborative environment provided by Duke has also fostered a sense of community, which positively impacted my experience I have made lifelong friends and colleagues that I will reach out to in a few months with many questions as I embark on my career as a Dermatologist
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Our residency training program continues to expand our school engagement footprint within the Durham Public Schools system. Recognizing the impact of exposing underrepresented students early in their schooling to careers in STEM fields and Dermatology, our residents are quick to jump at the opportunity to volunteer with these student groups In the past few years, we have established efforts with the City of
Medicine Academy High School, The School for Creative Studies High School, and Brogden Middle School along with plans in the spring to present at a health fair held at Hillside High School. The majority of students in these groups are from underrepresented populations and often lower socioeconomic backgrounds
Our derm residents have homed in on their best teaching skills to connect with these teenagers Student engagements often include discussing career pathways to the various medical roles in dermatology, education on what dermatologists do, and a hands-on portion To keep it lively, residents mix interesting dermatology basics with pop culture references and create Kahoot interactive quizzes to test and build confidence in the students' dermatology diagnostic skills The hands-on section is often the favorite For this, the residents guide the students on performing shave and punch biopsies of "suspicious" melanocytic neoplasms on apples, injecting local anesthesia (saline) into bananas, and performing cryotherapy on fruit "warts"
A few residents each year also enjoy participating in Duke-Durham School Days where hundreds of middle school students from families with no prior college experience spend a day on the Duke campus Our residents add to the theme that "You have to see it to be it" by providing the personal interaction to inspire these young students to attend college and to envision themselves in a career that maximizes their talents We hope to one day see some of these students walking our clinic or research lab hallways as peers in science and healthcare!
A lot has changed in the Dermatology application and match process for today’s medical students
compared to when many residents and faculty found their way into Dermatology in the past Among the many changes that have occurred is that interviews are now almost exclusively held in a virtual format For better or worse, it appears this new way of interviewing is here to stay
To help our Duke medical students develop their interviewing skills and succeed in the ever-competitive Dermatology Match, the Duke Dermatology education team launched a Mock Interview Initiative in the fall of 2022 For the past two years, we offered each student applying to dermatology 15-minute virtual mock interviews to replicate the actual interview day After each interview session, volunteer interviewers gave structured feedback on student performance Post-interview survey data found:
100% of participants felt that mock interviews were helpful in preparing for residency interviews
100% of participants felt that mock interviews should be offered to future medical students looking to apply to Dermatology residency
82% of participants felt more confident in their preparedness for upcoming residency interviews after their mock interviews
In the first iteration of this project, students were interviewed by Duke Dermatology faculty. We pivoted in our second year to Duke Dermatology Alumni volunteers to eliminate introduction of bias amongst faculty who would also be interviewing during the regular interview season. We would like to thank alumni volunteers Dr. Tiffany Alexander, Dr. Stavonnie Patterson, and Dr. Lori Etter for generously volunteering their time for interviews in the fall 2023 to our current 4th year medical students
Our hope is to continue to offer this Mock Interview opportunity annually, pairing medical students with Duke Dermatology Alumni volunteers The time commitment is small but the reward (getting our outstanding students matched in Dermatology programs across the country) is great Please consider volunteering your time if you are able Please reach out to associate residency program director Dr Amber Fresco (ami@duke edu) or second year medical student Robyn Guo (robyn guo@duke edu) if you are interested! Thank you to Jamie Lebhar, current fourth year medical student, for all of her efforts in coordinating this project over the past two years!
A year of hard work from our amazing operations team has culminated in many milestones and changes
for Duke Dermatology! We are now caring for patients at five locations:
Duke Dermatology 3K (Duke South, main campus): General and medical dermatology practice
Duke Dermatology Patterson Place (near 15/501 and 40): General and medical dermatology practice, pediatric and family dermatology, Mohs surgery
Duke Dermatology South Durham (near Southpoint mall): General and medical dermatology practice
Duke Dermatology Wakefield (Raleigh): General and medical dermatology practice, family dermatology, Mohs surgery
Duke Dermatology Dawson Hall (North Chapel Hill near 40): Laser, general and medical dermatology practice
We are moving forward into the new world of Duke Health Integrated Practice, where we strive to continue providing world class dermatologic care in ambulatory and inpatient settings and further build our wide range of expertise We currently have 32 faculty and 8 APPs, including experts in transplant dermatology, cutaneous oncology, inpatient dermatology, melanoma, hidradenitis, immunodermatology (blistering disease, autoimmune disease, inflammatory disease), pediatric dermatology, nail disorders, complex medical dermatology, Mohs surgery, and many others
As always, we want to make sure we support dermatologists and other sub specialists in the community We welcome referrals to our specialty clinics and are working to further simplify/streamline this process Fax referrals to 919-479-2670 if we can ever help!
The Dermatology Clinical Research Unit (CRU) has continued its mission of discovery and providing new therapies for the treatment of skin diseases this year
In 2022, we opened our second clinical site for clinical trials at the South Durham Clinic in order to enroll additional disease groups and allow patient access to cutting edge dermatologic therapeutic care without having to travel to main campus We are thrilled to report the great success of this clinical site as we have 5 active clinical trials open there with several more in progress to open soon
Our CRU has not only expanded by the absolute number of trials that are open, which is far more than in years past, but the complexity of the trials is increasing We have successfully opened and enrolled into several Oncology trials, performing study activities previously only managed in the Cancer Center Research Unit
While we continue to have trials started by some of our more experienced research faculty, we are thrilled that more first-time PI’s are engaging in clinical research than previously We are striving to provide ample support to faculty so that everyone interested in engagement can do so easily!
We celebrate a very successful year in the Dermatology CRU and look forward to continued growth and excellence in the years ahead!
The Streicher Award, established in 2004 in honor of Mike Streicher - a former Duke Derm's Business Manager - recognizes those members of the department the provide "Exceptional Service to our Patients, Providers, and Support Team Check out all our Streicher Award winners at https://duke is/nk3p8
July 2023
December 2023
Dr Zhang is our Vice Chair of Research and the Director of the Zhang Lab Read on to learn more about Dr Zhang
Tell us about the road that brought you to Duke Dermatology.
After college, I worked for about 3 years in the Radiology Department as an Assistant Engineer specialized in the use and maintainence of a CT Scanner, the 1st CT in the Hospital at the time I came to the US for graduate study in the 1990s and subsequently obtained postdoctoral training at UCSF and Stanford in the areas of innate immunity, epithelial biology, and cancer biology.
How long have you been at Duke?
I have been at Duke for 18 years I joined Duke Dermatology as an independent investigator in December 2005 when Dr Russell Hall was the Division chief I had the fortune to witness the transition from Division to Department status and the tremendous expansion of the clinic and research missions of the Department
What inspired you to pursue a career in research?
To be a scientist is a childhood fascination It was made possible by the rich training opportunities provided by the academic institutions and outstanding mentors in the US
Tell us about your lab
I run a small lab The number of people fluctuates overtime due to funding availability Currently, we have 7 members comprised of a lab manager and trainees of different levels (postdoctoral associate, graduate students, and undergraduate students, as well as a visiting scholar) Occasionally, we have physician scientists coming to the lab to do bench work We love having them!
Our research is focused on skin and cancer biology We investigate how dysregulation of signal tranasduction and gene expression in keratinocytes impairs cutaneous innate immunity, and results in inflammatory skin disorders, as well as skin cancer We are also interested in exploring signaling pathways contributing to melanoma pathogenesis Recently, we developed new interests in studying immune cells of the tumor microenvironment (TME) Specifically, we are exploring molecular mechanisms underlying the development of suppressive immune cells in melanoma, and thus new strategies to target these cells in hopes of boosting anticancer immunity.
What has/have been the most satisfying aspect of your work in Dermatology?
The most satisfying aspect of academic work is the freedom to test new scientific ideas I also enjoy the collegial environment within and outside of Duke Dermatology and witnessing the growth and success of our trainees
What are some of the challenges you have found when pursuing your research? How have you addressed them?
The major challenge in academic research is securing stable funding which is a demanding and incredibly competitive job The main strategy to address this is to keep submitting applications, and be ready to accept rejections and celebrate occasions of success like a lottery winner Team science and a diverse research portfolio are additional strategies, the latter of which is however a double-edged sword: increases chances of winning, but requires exponential effort
What activities are you involved in outside the lab?
I review grants and manuscripts on an ad hoc basis; I watch random comedy shows and soap operas; I enjoy occasional zoom exercise, walking with friends in the neighborhood, and family gatherings, of course
Solid organ transplant recipients also experience a high burden of HPV-related disease including
After solid organ transplantation, patients receive immunosuppressive medications to protect their transplanted organ These medications can lead to many dermatological side effects, including increased risk of cutaneous malignancy and viral- associated diseases The Whitley Lab focuses on understanding these side effects and developing better ways to prevent and treat them Our group is composed of a dynamic team of medical students, dermatology residents, and technicians working together to solve these important questions
Solid organ transplant recipients experience a 100-fold increased risk of cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma compared to their immunocompetent counterparts. Importantly, these patients experience a high burden of disease with more aggressive tumors and higher morbidity and mortality. Treatment options are particularly limited for these patients I am conducting translational studies to understand what drives cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma in this population in order to develop strategies for prevention and treatment
recalcitrant warts I am working with engineers to develop novel device/drug combinations to treat these lesions
Research in the Zhang Lab encompasses 2 main areas:
1) How dysregulation of signal transduction and gene expression in epidermal keratinocytes contributes to development of skin defects, inflammation, and carcinogenesis
2) Mechanisms underlying the immune suppressive microenvironment in melanoma and strategies to target these suppressive immune cells to boost anticancer immunity
Research in the Cole lab focuses on three main themes:
1. Mechanisms of pruritus and cutaneous dysesthesiae: we recently described a novel mechanism for itch generation in notalgia paresthetica involving the unmasking of itch signals through deficits in the central itch-inhibitory effects of A-delta coldtransmission fibers This finding explains the "ice pack sign" in neuropathic itch, or the observation that neuropathic itch is alleviated by cold temperatures For this project, the Cole lab was awarded the award for Best Poster (Clinical Science) - Runner Up at the 2023 United States Association for the Study of Pain (IASP) annual meeting
including erythema (color change) as a component differentially score patients with skin of color. The lab is currently exploring better methods for measuring itch and inflammation in skin of color such as infrared thermography.
3. Biobanking: we are in the process of building a departmental biorepository for research and discovery. The Duke Dermatology Biobank collects high quality clinical samples that are very carefully clinically annotated These samples are available for use at no cost to any Duke Dermatology researcher We collected our first specimen earlier this calendar year and since then the biobank has been growing at a steady rate!
2. Itch and inflammatory skin diseases in skin of color: current disease severity scoring measures which Stay
Pinnell 2023
Pinnell 2022
Dr Porcia Love completed her Dermatology residency at Duke in 2013 and she joined Montgomery Dermatology right after residency In 2016 she became the Founder and Medical Director of River Region Dermatology and Laser, where she provides services in Medical Dermatology, Cosmetic Dermatology and Laser Surgery In 2023 she expanded to open her cosmetic building, River Region Aesthetics, that houses those services as well as clinical research
Read on to learn more about Dr Love
What made you choose Dermatology as your career path?
I chose dermatology as I love the visual nature of the specialty, the opportunity to utilize my procedural skills and address health disparities
What was the best part of training at Duke Derm?
The best part of training at Duke Derm was the wonderful faculty, resources, comprehensive training and overall diverse dermatology experience
What are you most proud of from your time at Duke?
During my time at Duke Derm, I was most proud to be named chief resident with so much respect for those who came before me
Describe the characteristics of the people with whom you most enjoyed working at Duke Derm
I really appreciated the approachability, collegiality, and willingness of my faculty and colleagues at Duke Derm to teach at all hours of the day and night
"Looking back at Duke residency: “I was so happy to have matched back at Duke! I enjoyed working with attendings I was close to in medical school, including Drs. John Murray, Elise Olsen, Neil Prose, and Russell Hall. As chief resident, I was also very close to Dr. Amber Atwater.
How do you envision your continued engagement with Duke Derm?
I envision my continued engagement with Duke Derm as the opportunity to mentor and lecture to residents.
What advise do you have for current trainees and students considering a career in Dermatology?
I advise current trainees and students considering a career in Dermatology to learn as much as you can during your training and residency
Are you a Duke Derm Alumn?
Share your updates with us!
Email us at duderm@duke edu
Scan the QR Code below to submit updates
It is a privilege to have joined Duke Dermatology this past year, and it has been a particularly exciting time at the institution to do so The glow of the University’s centennial celebrations has provided us an opportunity to reflect on our journey as a dermatology community To that end, we are embarking on two projects
The goal of the first is to tell our collective story through an oral history of the department Duke Dermatology has grown dramatically and in a myriad of ways from its earliest days nearly a century ago, when second-year medical student J Lamar “Cal” Calloway was hand-picked as the first future Duke dermatologist In this undertaking, we will interview current and past faculty and trainees about the full range of Duke dermatologic history Specific topics we will explore include the modernization of clinical practice, educational programming, research innovations, community activism, the transformation from a division of Internal Medicine into an independent department, and the diversifying composition of our community itself.
The second project is to create an interactive Duke Dermatology network to help us all take full advantage of our vast collective experience, knowledge, and connections We plan to generate an intuitive, searchable online database that will help trainees find alumni mentors and job opportunities, help young faculty make contacts across the academic and business landscape, and help older alumni identify potential partners for their successful ventures Duke Dermatology’s influence is far reaching, and it will do us all a great service to strengthen and streamline the ties that bind us together
If you are interested in contributing your time, voice, or expertise to these efforts, please contact Dr Daren Simkin at: daren simkin@duke edu
Check out Duke Derm’s Alumni page:
https://duke.is/DermAlum
Check out Duke Derm’s past newsletters:
Spring 2023
Spring 2022
We welcomed four new Faculty members in the last year:
Dr Alessi César grew up in a small town in Brazil She went to medical school at the University of São Paulo, also in Brazil, where she also completed her first derm residency. Iin 2015 her PhD brought her to the USA. She and her family decided to stay and she went through training again in dermatology at the University of Iowa
Dr Kroshinsky grew up in New York and moved to the Chicago area for undergrad and med school She worked at Massachusetts General Hospital/MassGeneral Hospital for Children for 16 years before coming to Duke
Dr Fixsen grew up near Hillsborough, NC (outside of Chapel Hill) and went to undergrad at UNC She studied art as an undergrad (not pre-med). Medicine wasn’t on her radar until some elective biology classes as a senior sparked her interest. After undergrad, she worked in a lab at Duke for two years doing translational research on hematopoietic stem cells This was a formative experience and confirmed that she wanted to work with people and not with mice She completed medical school at Duke, then internal medicine intern year at the University of Hawaii, followed by dermatology residency at UT Southwestern in Dallas She really enjoyed getting to travel and explore other areas of the country, but after residency she was ready to be closer to home and her family and friends in the area
Dr. Simkin grew up in Boston and went to college at Dartmouth, where he became interested in creative writing. After graduating, he moved to Los Angeles to screenwrite and enrolled in courses at UCLA. There he stumbled into work with the author Gore Vidal, initially as his typist, but over time became his assistant, companion, and caregiver Dr Simkin continued writing, trying out different genres including kids’ stories, had some success with this, and moved back to the east coast After working various jobs as a writer, he started to miss the caregiving, so became an EMT, then did a post bac premed program at Penn, then a year of geriatrics medical education work at Mount Sinai in New York, before attending medical school at Johns Hopkins Dr Simkin completed his internship at NYU, then returned to Baltimore for Dermatology residency at Hopkins where he stayed on as faculty for a year after training He moved to North Carolina from Michigan, where he worked in private practice as his spouse completed her surgical fellowship
We also said farewell to several colleagues:
Carrie Rao, MD will be moving to New York We are grateful for her years of service at the VA, as director of the medical students rotation, and for running Lincoln clinics
Sarah Blanchard, MD has decided to consolidate her clinical activities to the VA We thank her for continuing to teach our residents and students while taking care of veterans
Amanda Suggs, MD has decided to work for the FDA We wish her the best in advocating for dermatology in her new role
Bahar Bharani, MD has decided to move back home to Canada We are grateful for the time that she has been a vibrant faculty member and look forward to her continued success up north
Chuan-Yuan Li, PhD has moved back to China to take care of aging parents while restarting his research at Capital Medical University in Beijing We wish him much success in his research
Yasmin Mathlin, DNP has decided to work as a medical science liaison for SunPharma We wish her success in her new career
Lauren Baughman, NP has decided to move back home to Rochester, New York. We have enjoyed seeing her blossom as an independent dermatology nurse practitioner and wish her the best
Mary Sheldon Beckwith, MHS, PA-C
Mary Sheldon Beckwith, MHS, PA-C has decided to work at a private practice in the area. We wish her the best in her new position
Continued from page 3
What are some of the challenges you have found in your training? How have you addressed them?
Most of the challenges I have found in training have been about patient care It has been hard to balance being present and available for each patient I had difficulty knowing when to turn off the notifications or stopping myself from following up on how patients were doing after hours To address this, I turned off notifications on my phone after a particular hour, which helped me focus on other tasks that needed to be completed for the day At times, I still perseverate on how patients are doing, but I now have a set timeframe for when I allow myself to go down the rabbit hole and check on the progress of my patients
What activities are you involved in outside the program?
One of my favorite things at the moment is classpass! It is an app that allows you to sign up for different gyms in the area I love trying new workouts, especially with friends who also have the app; it is something I look forward to after work I also love to spend time outside with my dog, Otto! I try to get a long hike/walk a few times a week with him I also enjoy spending time with friends I took up salsa classes for a bit, which was fun, and I also took tennis lessons for two months before my forearm muscles began to hurt too much This is something I hope to pick up again in the future!
What is the next for you after completing your training?
I will be moving to Austin, Texas! I signed with Austin Skin Physicians My practice will include a mixture of general dermatology, surgical dermatology of benign and malignant skin conditions, and cosmetic dermatology.
What is a fun fact that most people don't know about you?
I was featured in a book when I was six years old titled "Look Mom No Cavities!" Unfortunately, I did develop cavities later in life, but my photo is forever in that book
We hope you enjoyed the 2024 issue of Duke Dermatology’s newsletter.
We also hope that you will remain engaged with the department by attending our Pinnell Symposium and Cal Club reunion (details coming soon!) and by collaborating with Dr Simkin in telling our collective story and creating an interactive Duke Dermatology network (see page 12) We are very excited to embark on these projects and to count on your input and experience to make them successful
We thank you for the continued support, which helps us carry the legacy of our training programs every day when you care for your patients, make groundbreaking scientific discoveries, and lead in the field of dermatology We hope you will help us continue to train, challenge, and prepare our Duke residents and fellows of today to follow in your footsteps, while providing quality care to patients here at Duke
By supporting The Callaway Fund, you help keep us at the forefront of technological advances vital for patient care and teaching The fund also supports resident research activities, including travel to present their research at national meetings, and enhances resident education through an active Visiting Professor Program Every contribution, no matter the amount, helps our program continue to excel and our trainees to learn, grow, and thrive
By supporting the Legacy Teaching Fund, you can help us provide one or more annual awards to faculty members who best display dedication to, and excellence in the teaching of residents, fellows, and others The endowment will give Duke Dermatology the ability to reward faculty for their outstanding work training the next generation of dermatologists. The Legacy Dermatology Teaching Fund emphasizes that education is a priority for our department equal to those activities that generate revenue.
We thank you for your support throughout the years and we look forward to continue working with you to keep Duke Dermatology as a leader in the field