Ashburn, Regain control of your skin today

Melanoma, the most serious form of skin cancer, is not as common as the other two major types of skin cancer. A skin cancen sreening with a total body skin examination (TBSE) is arguably the safest, easiest and possibly the most cost-effective screening test in medicine. This can be done by most doctors and nurses. There is no national consenus on how often to get screened but high risk patients should be screened more frequently. Many providers recommend lifelong dermatologic surveillance for patients with a personal history of melanoma including, a family history of melanoma in two or more blood relatives, the presence of multiple atypical moles, the presence of numerous actinic keratoses (precancerous lesions that are grey to pink colored scaly patches of skin on sun-exposed areas of the body).

An in person or video skin consult is a good place to start for an affortable skin cancer screening.

In short, primary care / general practitioners / family medicine providers can treat most non serious skin issues. They are generally a good place to start for most skin issues including mild acne, warts, minor rashes, bug bites, simple cysts, dandruff, rosacea, athlete’s foot, and mild, benign lesions.

If the GP don’t clear up the problem or the problem is deemed more serious by the GP, it’s time to consult a specialist.

Specialists are often more expensive than a general primary care doctor and you may have to wait longer to see a dermatologist.