Utility of Gene Expression Profiling in Skin Cancer: A Comprehensive Review.

Understanding the metastatic potential of a skin cancer is essential to effective management. Gene expression profiling (GEP) is an innovative technology that has allowed for a better understanding of tumor biology in various skin cancers. Current methods focus on identifying and quantifying ribonucleic acid (RNA) transcripts in tissue samples. Using reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction, specific RNA transcripts are reverted into deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) for quantification. The addition of RNA-seq has further enhanced our knowledge of genomes not only by measuring known sequences, but also by identifying novel genes in various skin cancers. GEP requires only a small amount of RNA and has a high level of reproducibility. Using this technology, several GEPs for skin cancers have been developed to augment diagnosis and prognosis of skin cancer. This article reviews the process of gene expression profiling and the current GEPs that are available or under investigation for skin cancer. J Drugs Dermatol. 2023;22(5): doi:10.36849/JDD.7017.

Severe persistent urticaria following laser hair reduction.

BACKGROUND: Laser hair reduction is a common practice that utilized light-based therapy to prevent future hair growth. Complications following laser hair reduction treatment include thermal burns, which may lead to hyper- or hypopigmentation, hair stimulation, scar, or transient erythema of treated areas. AIMS: Review reports of persistent urticaria following laser hair reduction and discuss a rarely discussed laser complication. METHODS: Pubmed literature review. RESULTS: There have been very rare reports of persistent urticaria following laser hair reduction. Similar case reports have also been described though no definitive reasoning for this reaction, nor consistent treatment has been documented. DISCUSSION: In this report, we present a patient who developed persistent urticaria with severe pruritus in the areas treated with laser hair reduction. Previous reports an association was found between allergies and post-treatment urticarial eruption, with 33/36 patients having allergies, mostly to dust mites which is similar to the patient presented. Other etiologies such as reaction to cryogen and physical urticaria are unlikely. CONCLUSION: Our report highlights a case of persistent urticaria with severe pruritus following laser hair reduction treatment, with both similarities and differences to other cases reported in the literature. While this is a rare side effect of laser hair removal, it should be monitored in patients who have a history of moderate to severe environmental allergies.

Perforating Granuloma Annulare Appearing as a Psoriasiform Lesion.

We present a 54-year-old Caucasian female with a history of diabetes mellitus, multiple sclerosis, and ulcerative colitis who presented with nail dystrophy, polyarthralgia in her hands and hips, myalgia, proximal myopathy, dactylitis, and psoriasiform-appearing progressive, painful plaques on the dorsal aspect of her hands. Histologic examination of the lesion from the left index finger revealed an interstitial and necrobiotic granulomatous dermatitis with connective tissue mucin deposition associated with a perivascular lymphoid infiltrate. Additionally, there was focal transepidermal elimination of the necrobiotic material. She was diagnosed with perforating granuloma annulare (PGA). We are unaware of any other cases of PGA in the literature with this presentation.