New research shows that cancer patients with dark skin are at higher risk for serious cases of painful side effects from radiation therapy. According to the study by Dr. Juhi Purswani of NYU Langone, the cancer detection tool only works well in light-skinned patients.
Of the four million patients in the US who receive radiation therapy every year, more than 90% will develop radiation dermatitis, which are a kind of skin burns. The main screening tool approved by the National Cancer Institute for detecting and classifying the severity of the disease looks for redness in the skin.
For this study, researchers examined radiation dermatitis over the course of a year after starting radiation therapy. In total, there were 60 patients of different skin colors, with breast cancer, using a spectrophotometer. This device is typically used for color analysis in the paint and cosmetics industries.
The study noted that unlike fair skin, darker skin does not experience redness as radiation dermatitis develops, instead it darkens.
The same research team had previously reported that doctors often do not diagnose radiation dermatitis in patients with darker skin, or may only diagnose it when the skin begins to peel and scar.
The study leader, Dr. Juhi Purswani of NYU Langone shared the new findings at the ASTRO meeting in Washington. Purswani her team of researchers who worked on the study recommended that the standard screening tool must be changed. In the abstract presented, they shared that the tool tool “likely under-captures radiation dermatitis in skin of color”. One of the consequences is patients on their won, trying to treat the pain using creams and painkillers sold without a prescription.
