DR ROBERT
in research
Dr Robert is involved with collaborative field therapy studies delivered by Melanoma and Skin Cancer Trials Limited (masc.org.au) and is open to discussion on new and emerging research.
An advocate in the field, Dr Robert is engaged in educating GP registrars and medical students, as well as colleagues with an interest in skin cancer.
Dr Robert is currently exploring opportunities to widen the scope of practice in remote locations to deliver an additional healthcare service.
Field treatment vs. spot treatment and excisions
Many people with skin malignancies have had a lesion “burnt” or “frozen” off. Liquid nitrogen is used to cause simultaneous destruction of the malignancy and immune response to eliminate lesions that don’t require a biopsy or excision. This is called spot treatment. If there are many such lesions in an area of skin, field treatment may be a better option. Topical chemotherapy, immunotherapy or biotherapy can be used to eliminate “sunspots” on an area (field), where only sun-damaged cells will be affected, often treating far more lesions than can be seen with the naked eye.
A very underrated method of treating sun-damaged skin is your common sunscreen. Used as a daily moisturiser rather than just before you go out in the sun, it has a significant impact on sun-damaged skin often negating the need for field treatment and reducing the risk of all skin cancers including melanoma.