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SKIN Canada Newsletter: Spring 2024

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Canadian Skin Research Conference June 25-27, 2024 in Ottawa

A joint meeting of the Skin Investigators Network of Canada (SkIN Canada), Skin Research Group of Canada (SRGC), Canadian Dermatology Foundation (CDF), Canadian Skin Patient Alliance (CSPA), and Canadian Society for Investigative Dermatology (CSID), will be held in conjunction with the 99th Canadian Dermatology Association (CDA) Annual Conference.

Abstract Submission Open – Deadline Friday April 26, 2024

Registration Open – Deadline Monday May 20, 2024

Click Here To Submit

Paper Published by C-NeST Committee Members

The authors surveyed dermatologists and people with atopic dermatitis in Canada regarding their experience and perceptions of allergy testing, including patch testing, as part of atopic dermatitis management. They found a lot of heterogeneity in practice and experience, particularly for patch testing, suggesting that a clinical trial assessing its utility for atopic dermatitis could be useful.

Lee EY, Turchin I, Chan AW, Beecker J, Bissonnette R, Catherall H, Cresswell-Melville A, Gooderham M, Hawkins N, Hong HC, Levell NJ, Lapointe McKenzie JA, Manion R, Papp K, Drucker AM. Current practices of allergy testing in adults with atopic dermatitis in Canada: a national survey. J Cutan Med Surg. Mar 19, 2024:12034754241239260. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/38504147

Can SkIN Canada help?
Request support for your study

SkIN Canada has launched a formal study intake process for investigators requesting support from the Network. Please visit our RESOURCES page for more information on how we can help with funding, patient engagement, database creation, project administration, ethics application, or statistical support.

Submit Intake Form

Feature Profiles

Early Career Investigator

Picture of Dr. Philippe Lefrancois, MD, PhD

Dr. Philippe Lefrancois is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Medicine, Division of Experimental Medicine, at McGill University. His laboratory focuses on enhancing understanding of skin cancers, particularly Basal Cell Carcinoma (BCC), which is the most prevalent of all human cancers. The aim is to enable patients to benefit from new targeted therapies and management options. The research involves defining the cellular and molecular phenotypes of aggressive BCC tumors. Computational biology, genomics, and molecular biology approaches are employed using various sample types, including data from cancer consortia, patient-derived tumors, publicly-available sequencing data from other patient cohorts, and primary cancer cell lines. The emphasis is on identifying novel signaling pathways and actionable targets for BCC, as well as characterizing the BCC tumor microenvironment with a focus on clinically-relevant features.

Read Full Interview

Patient Research Partner

Mr. Morris F Manolson

Dr. Morris Manolson is a Professor and Vice Dean, Research at the Faculty of Dentistry with a cross-appointment in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Toronto.  He is also the President of the Canadian Connective Tissue Society.  His research, focusing on preventing excessive bone loss associated with osteoporosis, inflammatory arthritis and periodontal disease, is funded by CIHR and NSERC, and has produced three patent applications and over 60 peer-reviewed papers which have accumulated over 5000 citations.  He received the “Quality of Life” award from the Institute for Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis, and the Canadian Institute of Health Research-Institute for Gender Health/Ontario Women’s Health Council Senior Investigator Award, both in recognition of his work towards preserving bone health in arthritis and osteoporosis. Even though he is primarily a researcher, within SkIN Canada, he has assumed the valuable role of a patient partner in multiple committees, actively contributing to research through various means.

Read Full Interview

Featured Profiles - Team Development Award Recipients 2024

Dr. Aaron Drucker

Dr. Aaron Drucker, MD, SCM, FRCPC

Dr. Aaron Drucker is an Associate Professor, Division of Dermatology, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto and dermatologist and researcher specializing in epidemiology and evidence-based treatment of skin conditions. His research aims to enhance the well-being of individuals affected by inflammatory and neoplastic skin diseases by assessing risk factors, comorbidities, healthcare utilization, and evidence-backed therapies.

Team Development Award Project Title: Using pathology reports to enable population-based studies of rare skin disease.

Lay summary: Our new team of dermatologists, pathologists, researchers, and patients from multiple provinces in Canada will work together to unlock the potential of Canadian population-based data to study rare inflammatory skin diseases. We will demonstrate the feasibility of linking verified cases of bullous pemphigoid and pemphigus vulgaris, 2 rare blistering diseases, with Ontario health data. If successful, we can apply this work to future research in other provinces and to answer questions that are important to patients and clinicians. Our proposal aligns with the SkIN Canada Team Development Award objective of encouraging novel teams to develop infrastructure to conduct research that will benefit patients living with skin conditions and aligns with the Rare Skin Diseases focus area.

Scientific summary: Our new team of medical dermatologists, dermatopathologists, health service researchers, and patients from multiple provinces in Canada will work together to unlock the potential of Canadian health administrative data to study rare inflammatory skin diseases. We will work together to develop case definitions of bullous pemphigoid and pemphigus vulgaris based on pathology reports. We will apply those definitions to pathology reports in Ontario, and then link verified cases with other health administrative data. This will demonstrate the feasibility of using pathology reports to identify cases of rare skin diseases that can then be linked to study their epidemiology and health service utilization. We will use this preliminary work to expand our project to other provinces and answer questions about bullous pemphigoid and pemphigus vulgaris in routinely collected administrative health data. Our proposal aligns with the SkIN Canada Team Development Award objective of encouraging novel teams to develop infrastructure to conduct research that will benefit patients living with skin conditions and aligns with the Rare Skin Diseases focus area. We will use SkIN Canada’s support to apply for additional funding to conduct population-based studies on immunobullous and other rare conditions with the aim of improving outcomes for people living with rare skin diseases.

Dr. Regine Mydlarski

Dr. Régine Mydlarski, MD, FRCPC

Dr. Regine Mydlarski co-founded the Dermatology Residency Program at the University of Calgary in 2009 and served as the program director for six years. She gives selflessly to trainees across the country. During the COVID-19 pandemic, when dermatologists were challenged to provide care with health restrictions in place, Dr. Mydlarski supported the community by sharing facilities, supplies and reorganizing work and on-call schedules to ensure that patients with dermatological illnesses were not neglected.

As the Chair of the Dermatology Specialty Committee for the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada since 2018, Dr. Mydlarski has provided strategic advice to ensure that dermatological training optimally prepares graduates to meet the healthcare needs of patients.

Dr. Mydlarski is the Director of the Translational Research Program in Calgary, has several Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and Canadian Dermatology Foundation (CDF) funded projects underway; she has been such a driving force behind research at the University of Calgary that she now has a resident research award named in her honour.

In her current role as Calgary’s Dermatology Division Head, Dr. Mydlarski has expanded the division’s footprint, opening up a new position for a Mohs surgeon.

Team Development Award Project Title: Canadian Transplant Dermatology Research Network

Lay Abstract: Solid organ transplant recipients are at a much higher risk of developing skin problems, especially skin cancer. Skin cancers in these patients can significantly impact their quality of life as they are more likely to recur and spread to other parts of the body. Many important questions about how to best diagnose, treat, and prevent skin cancer in organ transplant patients remain unanswered. Therefore, we propose to create a research network of skin doctors nationwide to investigate skin disease in transplant patients. This group of skin doctors will work alongside transplant patients to set national research priorities, share information between centres, and combine resources to conduct large projects that otherwise would not be completed. Initial projects might include studying skin cancer prevention strategies or establishing risk prediction tools to identify patients at higher risk of skin
cancer. These results could directly change clinical practice and improve the lives of the many Canadians with organ transplants.

Scientifc Summary: Solid organ transplant recipients (SOTRs) are at high risk of skin cancer, and keratinocyte carcinomas (KC) are a significant source of morbidity and mortality. Research in the field of transplant dermatology to address the complex care needs of these patients is limited by the absence of an interdisciplinary, national research network that can collaborate to identify critical areas for shared future inquiry, share relevant data, and complete large-scale research studies. Therefore, we propose a Canadian transplant dermatology research network that connects and supports dermatologists and patient stakeholders nationwide in identifying innovative solutions for the skin problems facing SOTRs. Key work plan milestones are to: 1) conduct a priority-setting initiative to identify the most pressing issues in transplant dermatology; 2) recruit additional sites and physician members; and 3) create a national shared transplant dermatology database using SkIN Canada’s data-sharing agreements. Potential early areas of research focus will include identifying chemoprophylactic strategies, effective risk prediction tools, and imaging modalities for advanced or recurrent cancer. We predict this network will have numerous associated benefits, such as: a) pooled resources and collaboration to encourage the completion of ongoing studies and expand the potential scale of future projects; b) a national repository of clinical, biochemical, and histopathologic data to direct future population-based analyses to identify modifiable risk factors and cost-effective preventative strategies; and c) interdisciplinary and multisite collaboration to improve study design, execution, and each individual participating locations’ research culture, processes, and systems based on the experiences of other institutions. The overarching goal of our proposal is to identify innovative research projects and develop cost-effective healthcare solutions for the skin challenges encountered by SOTRs. More specifically, our proposal builds capacity to address a Top Ten research priority identified by SkIN Canada: chemoprevention for squamous cell carcinoma in transplant recipients.

From the Training Committee Hub

Skin Canada Travel and Mobility Awards – Spring Application Deadline May 15, 2024

1. The deadline for the next SkIN Canada Trainee Travel Award is Wednesday May 15 (2024) before 11:59 PM ET. SkIN Canada provides partial funding for trainees to attend conferences as part of their training experience. A limited number of awards are available each year on a competitive basis. There will be two competition periods per year, one in May and one in October. Applicants who have previously received funding through this program in a fiscal year are not eligible to receive funding until the following fiscal year. The value of the SkIN Canada Travel Award is a maximum of $1,000 CAD

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2. The deadline for the next SkIN Canada Trainee Mobility Award is Wednesday May 15 (2024) before 11:59 PM ET. The SkIN Canada Trainee Mobility Award provides funding for trainees in the field of skin research to study and conduct research for a brief period in a laboratory other than their own within Canada or abroad as part of their training experience. A limited number of awards are available each year on a competitive basis.  There will be two competition periods per year, one in May and one in October. Applicants are eligible for the award only once during a particular training period or level of study (e.g. MSc, PhD, Clinical residency, or Postdoctoral training).
The value of the Skin Canada Trainee Mobility Award is up to $4,000 which can be used for the trainee’s research stay in a host laboratory within Canada or abroad for a period ranging from 2 weeks to 6 months.

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Skin Canada Training Committee

The Training Committee represents skin research trainees from across Canada and considers regional representation to be valuable. The committee currently has an opening for a PhD student or a post-doctoral fellow from any of the Western Provinces. If interested in joining this dynamic committee, please send your expression of interest and CV  to info@skincanada.org

Topics of Interest to Skin Research Trainees

The upcoming Canadian Skin Research Conference in Ottawa (June 25-27, 2024) will include a workshop for trainees on ‘professional development’ and a session on ‘Skin of Color Research’. All trainees are encouraged to participate. There is no registration fee.

Abstract Submission Open – Deadline Friday April 26, 2024

Registration Open – Deadline Monday May 20, 2024 

Click Here To Submit

News from other Organizations

CIHR National Oral Health Research Strategy

In light of the global shifts in health and scientific advancements, alongside the ongoing efforts in oral health and oral health care on a global scale and within Canada, CIHR’s Institute for Musculoskeletal Health & Arthritis (IMHA) has recognized a significant opportunity to develop Canada’s inaugural national oral health research strategy (NOHRS). Working closely with key stakeholders such as the Association of Canadian Faculties of Dentistry (ACFD), Canadian Association of Dental Research (CADR), Network for Canadian Oral Health Research (NCOHR), Canadian Dental Association (CDA), Canadian Dental Hygienists Association (CDHA), the Denturist Association of Canada (DAC), and the Canadian Dental Therapists Association (CDTA), IMHA convened an in-person meeting in Ottawa in March 2023 to kickstart the NOHRS creation process. This overview presents the primary research themes identified during that gathering, as well as the forthcoming steps leading to the publication of NOHRS in March 2024.

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Genodermatoses Network Meeting

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Open Call: Participation in Project on Indigenous Patients with Atopic Dermatitis

This is an open call for those interested in helping to develop a proposal involving formation of a national east-west collaborative interdisciplinary engagement initiative and culturally safe model aiming to improve care for Canadian Indigenous peoples living with or caring for those with atopic dermatitis. Co-PIs include Drs. Rachel Asiniwasis (University of Saskatchewan), Carolyn Jack (McGill), and Derek Chu (McMaster).

Please forward your CV to remotederm@outlook.com, particularly if you have experience with:
•    public and community health
•    qualitative and mixed-methods research
•    CIHR grant writing
•    Indigenous health and skin of colour
•    using guidelines involving meaningful and culturally safe practices and plans.

The team is also looking for another Co-PI from BC or Alberta.

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Keen-on Healing Fibrosis Symposium – October 18-19 2024

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Pfizer Global Medical Grants – Request for Proposals

Pfizer Global Medical Grants (GMG) supports the global healthcare community’s independent initiatives (e.g., research, quality improvement, or education) to improve patient outcomes in areas of unmet medical need that are aligned with Pfizer’s medical and/or scientific strategies.

Specific Area of Interest:  Projects that will be considered for Pfizer support will focus on educational programs addressing knowledge and practice gaps specific to the overall care management of atopic dermatitis (AD), Alopecia Areata (AA), or Vitilgo. If you have questions regarding this RFP, please direct them in writing to Sue Lee, Grant Officer (sue.lee@pfizer.com). Application Due Date: Monday April 15, 2024.
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Recent Publications on Skin Research

Inflammatory Skin Conditions

1.
Hundal S, Cappelli J, Croitoru D. Hundal S, Cappelli J, Croitoru D, et al. Cost-Utility Analysis of Clinic-Based Deroofing versus Local Excision for Hidradenitis Suppurativa. J Am Acad Dermatol. Dec 8 2024;. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39657847
2.
Vallee S, Deneux V, Funaro D. Vallee S, Deneux V, Funaro D, et al. Long-term evolution of prepubertal-onset anogenital lichen sclerosus: A 35-year retrospective and cross-sectional study from a single tertiary care maternal and pediatric center. J Am Acad Dermatol. Dec 3 2024;. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39637982
3.
Eichenfield LF, Hebert AA, Harper JC. Eichenfield LF, Hebert AA, Harper JC, et al. Triple-Combination Clindamycin Phosphate 1.2%/Adapalene 0.15%/Benzoyl Peroxide 3.1% Gel for Moderate-to-Severe Acne in Children and Adolescents. J Drugs Dermatol. Dec 1 2024;23(12):1049-1057.. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39630680
4.
Armstrong AW, Bissonnette R, Chovatiya R. Armstrong AW, Bissonnette R, Chovatiya R, et al. Treat-to-Target Outcomes With Tapinarof Cream 1% in Phase 3 Trials for Plaque Psoriasis. Cutis. Oct 2024;114(4):122-127.. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39621574
5.
Choi UE, Deng J, Parthasarathy V. Choi UE, Deng J, Parthasarathy V, et al. Risk factors and temporal associations of progression of the atopic march in children with early-onset atopic dermatitis. J Am Acad Dermatol. Nov 28 2024;. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39615548
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Wound Healing, Fibrosis and Regeneration

1.
Bian X, Piipponen M, Liu Z. Bian X, Piipponen M, Liu Z, et al. Epigenetic memory of radiotherapy in dermal fibroblasts impairs wound repair capacity in cancer survivors. Nature communications. Oct 28 2024;15(1):9286.. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39468077
2.
Arif S, Larochelle S, Trudel B. Arif S, Larochelle S, Trudel B, et al. The diffusion of normal skin wound myofibroblast-derived microvesicles differs according to matrix composition. J Extracell Biol. Jan 2024;3(1):e131.. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/38938680
3.
Arif S, Larochelle S, Trudel B. Arif S, Larochelle S, Trudel B, et al. The diffusion of normal skin wound myofibroblast-derived microvesicles differs according to matrix composition. J Extracell Biol. Jan 2024;3(1):e131.. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/38938680
4.
Arif S, Richer M, Larochelle S, Moulin VJ. Arif S, Richer M, Larochelle S, Moulin VJ. Microvesicles derived from dermal myofibroblasts modify the integrity of the blood and lymphatic barriers using distinct endocytosis pathways. J Extracell Biol. May 2024;3(5):e151.. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/38939570
5.
Rijal H, Bouadi N, Piguet V, Mukovozov I. Rijal H, Bouadi N, Piguet V, Mukovozov I. Treatment Outcomes of Scleroderma With Janus Kinase Inhibitors: A Systematic Review. J Cutan Med Surg. Jun 10 2024:12034754241260021.. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/38859662
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Skin Cancer

1.
Guerra Ordaz DJ, Whitelaw S, Kaouache M. Guerra Ordaz DJ, Whitelaw S, Kaouache M, et al. Evaluating the Implementation and Impact of BRAF Reflex Mutation Testing in Melanoma, Lung, and Colorectal Cancers. J Cutan Med Surg. Dec 4 2024:12034754241302821.. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39629857
2.
Koulmi K, Cattelan L, Litvinov IV. Koulmi K, Cattelan L, Litvinov IV. Evaluating Difluoromethylornithine Safety and Efficacy for Non-Melanoma Skin Cancer Chemoprevention: A Systematic Review. J Cutan Med Surg. Nov 30 2024:12034754241302818.. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39614759
3.
Huang Y, Fleming P, Fung K, Chan AW. Huang Y, Fleming P, Fung K, Chan AW. Response to Tang et al., “Insufficient evidence for association between dermatology follow-up and melanoma survival”. J Am Acad Dermatol. Nov 21 2024;. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39579995
4.
Ma B, James MT, Chan AW, Mydlarski PR. Ma B, James MT, Chan AW, Mydlarski PR. National Trends in Healthcare Expenditures for the Management of Skin Cancer in the United States. J Cutan Med Surg. Nov 16 2024:12034754241293131.. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39548853
5.
Karponis D, Joshy J, Stratigos IA. Karponis D, Joshy J, Stratigos IA, et al. Cutaneous melanoma in situ: a review. Clin Exp Dermatol. Oct 25 2024;. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39449583
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Skin of Colour

1.
Moy AP, Zhou D, Chen J, White C, Riedel ER, Pulitzer MP. Moy AP, Zhou D, Chen J, White C, Riedel ER, Pulitzer MP. Merkel Cell Carcinoma among non-Caucasian patients: a retrospective case-control study. J Am Acad Dermatol. Apr 23 2024;. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/38663746
2.
Cedirian S, Starace M, Natale A. Cedirian S, Starace M, Natale A, et al. Celebrating Diversity: Unveiling the Characteristics of Nail Psoriasis and Nail Lichen Planus in 30 Patients With Skin of Color. Dermatol Pract Concept. Oct 30 2024;14(4). https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39652925
3.
Greene A, Ghalambor T, Penner S, Irwin C, Hastings KT. Greene A, Ghalambor T, Penner S, Irwin C, Hastings KT. Evaluation of dermatologic diagnostic ability on skin of colour in preclinical medical students. Skin Health Dis. Dec 2024;4(6):e425.. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39624754
4.
Elhassan H. Elhassan H. Considerations for Physicians Treating Skin of Color: A Narrative Review. Cureus. Nov 2024;16(11):e74443.. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39606129
5.
Lee M, Brown LS, Sontheimer R, Chong BF. Lee M, Brown LS, Sontheimer R, Chong BF. Distinctive clinical features are found in dermatomyositis patients with skin of color. Arch Dermatol Res. Nov 26 2024;317(1):48.. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39589527
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Other

1.
Hedtrich S, Calderon M. Hedtrich S, Calderon M. Next generation concepts in dermal delivery, theranostics, and preclinical testing. Adv Drug Deliv Rev. Nov 29 2024:115482.. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39617255
2.
Coughlan K, Purvis T, Kilkenny MF. Coughlan K, Purvis T, Kilkenny MF, et al. From ‘strong recommendation’ to practice: A pre-test post-test study examining adherence to stroke guidelines for fever, hyperglycaemia, and swallowing (FeSS) management post-stroke. Int J Nurs Stud Adv. Dec 2024;7:100248.. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39507681
3.
Gupta AK, Talukder M, Piguet V. Gupta AK, Talukder M, Piguet V. Mpox: A Rising Threat-2 Public Health Emergencies in 2 Years. The Journal of investigative dermatology. Oct 21 2024;. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39436346
4.
Dinesh NEH, Rousseau J, Mosher DF. Dinesh NEH, Rousseau J, Mosher DF, et al. Mutations in fibronectin dysregulate chondrogenesis in skeletal dysplasia. Cellular and molecular life sciences : CMLS. Oct 5 2024;81(1):419.. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39367925
5.
Savard E, Magne B, Simard-Bisson C. Savard E, Magne B, Simard-Bisson C, et al. Design of an innovative method for measuring the contractile behaviour of engineered tissues. Tissue engineering Part C, Methods. Sep 23 2024;. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39311467
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