Skin. It's the biggest part of you. Insight from experts about treating and caring for your skin.

Many dermatology patients will undergo a skin biopsy at some point during their lives, especially if they have a new lesion that could potentially be a skin cancer. During a biopsy, a sample of body tissue is taken so that a type of doctor, known as a pathologist, can examine the individual cells in the tissue under a microscope in order to make a more definitive diagnosis.

With summer just around the corner, it's important for everyone to know a little bit more about sunburns. What are they? What can you do to avoid them? And what can you do once you have a sunburn?

Did you know approximately 20 out of every 100,000 light-skinned people will develop malignant melanoma? With odds like that you might not think it’s worth it to give much thought to this cancer. But malignant melanoma is real. I was one of those 20 in 100,000. My story isn’t unusual. In fact, you may find that my sun exposure sounds a lot like yours. I’m in my 30s and spend most of my days inside at work. It’s been years since I spent my summers life guarding at the pool. Plus, as an adult I always wore sunscreen whenever I knew I was going to be outside for any length of time. So what happened? Why did I get malignant melanoma? And more important, how did I manage to detect it early when it really wasn’t a prominent concern on my health radar? 

The tip of the iceberg… By the time you have made it to your Mohs surgery appointment, typically many prior steps have already happened. Perhaps you first noticed a bump or a spot that bled when you washed your face many months before. You thought it was a pimple or a blemish, but eventually, after several months, you realized this was not your average zit, and it was time to see a doctor.

Psoriasis is one of the most common skin conditions treated by dermatologists and it affects a significant proportion of the US population. Whether you've known it or not, chances are you've already encountered several people who have psoriasis in your life. 

Many dermatology patients will undergo a skin biopsy at some point during their lives, especially if they have a new lesion that could potentially be a skin cancer. During a biopsy, a sample of body tissue is taken so that a type of doctor, known as a pathologist, can examine the individual cells in the tissue under a microscope in order to make a more definitive diagnosis.

From who's susceptible to what to avoid, here are 5 things everyone should know about eczema, specifically atopic dermatitis.

Dermatologists have many strategies and tools available to treat skin conditions. One treatment that is very common in dermatology clinics is prescribing topical steroids. Steroids are used to treat common skin conditions such as eczema, psoriasis, and contact dermatitis.

Early diagnosis of hair loss is crucial because certain types of hair loss in the category of cicatricial alopecia can result in irreversible damage. To make full use of each dermatology visit, patients can help by being equipped with a basic knowledge on hair loss and an understanding of the goals of your dermatologist during the visit.

Since both moles and melanoma come from melanocytes, how can you tell the difference between a normal mole and a melanoma?

Nearly every person will experience a diagnostic error in their lifetime, according to a 2015 report by the National Academy of Medicine (formerly known as Institute of Medicine). That's a scary fact to wrap your head around. We hold our doctors and healthcare professionals to a high standard, expecting them to understand our symptoms and diagnose us correctly every time. But doctors are humans after all.

The FDA has limited oversight when it comes to cosmetics. So what can be done to protect consumers from products that cause adverse affects? Kwa and Xu highlight efforts to regulate a $60 billion industry and explain how you can help.