The past two decades have seen significant strides, not only in our understanding of the pathobiology of human skin aging, but also in the search for targeted modalities to treat or possibly prevent some of the changes that come with this process. Human skin aging can be categorized as either (a) chronologic/intrinsic aging or (b) extrinsic aging, of which photoaging is a major component [1–5].
Innovations in medical therapy have been associated with increasing life expectancy, improved quality of life, and with a decreasing need for hospitalizations and surgery. However, these benefits are not achieved without significant drawbacks. Medications are not completely safe and effective for everyone. Spear et al. [1] analyzed the efficacy of major drugs used to treat several important diseases...
The ability to predict efficacy and safety is crucial for drug discovery and development. To date, there are only a few genetic biomarkers whose clinical validity in predicting drug response has been clearly established; for example, HER-2/neu-positivity in breast cancer as a predictor of response to trastuzumab (Herceptin) [1]. Patient variability in response to medications can range from failure...
Molecular diagnostics is one of the most rapidly growing areas in laboratory medicine. Current applications in dermatology and dermatopathology cover a wide range of conditions, from infectious and inflammatory diseases, to cancer, and inherited skin disorders (genodermatoses). Early molecular tests were developed for diagnosis of systemic hematologic conditions, largely due to the relative ease in...