AUSTRALIA'S LONG-AWAITED FACE-TO-FACE CONFERENCE IS BACK – DELIVERING EXCEPTIONAL LEARNING IN ALL AREAS OF SKIN & SKIN CANCER MEDICINE.

Topic

 Presenters

Biopsies of acral sites (palms, soles, fingers, toes and nails)

This topic discusses how to take biopsies of tumours, infectious diseases and inflammatory disorders of the palms, soles and nails. The presentation covers common skin conditions you might see in general practice such as eczema, psoriasis, lichen planus, alopecia areata, and more. The topic also looks at some of the alternatives to biopsy, including clinical examination and dermoscopy.

Surgical treatment of acral tumours and common nail changes

You might see benign tumours on difficult sites like the palms, soles, fingers, toes, and nails, that are outside your scope of practice but cause your patients a great deal of discomfort and other problems. This presentation explores whether we need to treat these tumours and what the best treatment options might be, including how to achieve good surgical outcomes for patients.

BEST lines

This presentation covers BEST lines for skin surgery and much more, including how to translate knowledge of skin lines, skin thickness, neurovascular zones and fascial anatomy into better surgical performance and improved results for you and your patients. The teaching is based on Prof Sharad Paul’s latest research published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology: ‘Biodynamic excisional skin tension lines for cutaneous surgery presents a new paradigm in skin lines'.

Surgical management of uncommon cancers - Merkel, AFX, DFSP

This topic will describe the common presentations and management of the more common of the rare non-melanoma skin cancers including a typical fibroxanthoma, pleomorphic dermal sarcoma, undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma, dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans, dermal leiomyosarcoma, Merkel cell carcinoma and skin appendage tumours.

Perineural invasion and surgical margins

Perineural invasion (PNI) is a well known indicator for more aggressive behaviour and worse outcomes with both BCC and SCC. This lecture will examine surgical margins when treating BCC and SCC. The evidence base on the in vivo identification of clues to PNI will be initially discussed. This will be followed by content on how surgical margins need to be adjusted when PNI is found.

A/Prof John Pyne
Dr Simon Clark
Dr Tony Dicker

Radiation in the management of skin cancers

Management of cutaneous malignancies can be challenging and require multimodality and multidisciplinary treatment. This presentation aims to explain the role of radiotherapy in the context of definitive, adjuvant and palliative therapies for skin cancers. It will discuss radiation treatment, its delivery and limitations, as well as the risk factors considered after curative surgery to determine the need for post-operative radiotherapy.

Surgical management of melanoma in the USA

This presentation looks at the incidence and mortality of melanoma in the USA and Australia, as well as the causes and risk factors of the disease. It covers melanoma diagnosis through clinical skin exams, including common clues to look for using the ABC method. The topic then focuses on the surgical management of melanomas of various stages under a local anaesthetic within a general practice office, as well as when to refer elsewhere.

Wound management techniques

Wound management is an important and essential aspect of patient management in a community and home setting. This topic will provide you with a clear understanding of both the mechanisms of healing and the factors which impact on healing. It will examine pathophysiology of wounds and an improved knowledge of products and devices used today in the treatment and management of wounds.