3 Clinical Trials for Various Conditions
The aim of this study is to evaluate the imaging performance of Spectrally Encoded Confocal Microscopy (SECM) for imaging human skin and skin diseases.
The incidence of malignant melanoma has increased dramatically in recent decades. In 1930, the lifetime risk of an individual in the United States developing melanoma was 1 in 1,500. This has been exponentially increasing over the years with the risk estimated to be 1 in 75 in 2000 . According to the American Cancer Society, approximately 59,580 new cases of melanoma will be diagnosed in the United States in 2005 and about 7,770 people are expected to die of the disease.
Background: * Melanocytic nevi, or "moles," are non-cancerous growths of a type of skin cell called a melanocyte. * Large congenital melanocytic nevi (LCMN) are a special type of mole that begins to grow before birth and is larger than moles that develop after birth. * Determining how melanocytes in moles and LCMNs differ from normal melanocytes may increase the ability to predict whether a mole will give rise to a melanoma (a type of skin cancer) Objectives: * To understand how melanomas develop, by studying moles, LCMNs, and pigmented skin lesions that are suspicious for melanoma * To develop better criteria for diagnosing melanoma, particularly by using a device called a digital dermatoscope (a special camera, connected to a computer, that takes pictures of moles when they are magnified and illuminated) Eligibility: * Children 5 years old or older with an LCMN * Adults 18 years old or older with 100 or more moles larger than 2 mm in diameter and at least one 4 mm or more * Adults 18 years old or older with a pigmented lesion suspicious for melanoma Design: * Patients' personal and family health history is obtained. * Patients are examined by investigative team doctors, and several lesions are examined with a dermatoscope. * Additional photographs of part or all of the skin surface may be taken. * Some lesions may be biopsied. * Additional tests or examinations may be recommended. * Patients are followed periodically for skin or physical examinations, photography, laboratory and imaging evaluations, and possible skin biopsies. * Children may undergo brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)