A new study from Drexel University College of Medicine suggests all organ transplant recipients, regardless of race, should receive routine, total-body screenings for skin cancer.

Out of 259 nonwhite transplant recipients who were evaluated in the study, 19 skin cancer lesions were identified in 6 percent of the patients. The research was published Wednesday in JAMA Dermatology.

Further, the study shows risk factors for nonwhite transplant recipients likely differ between races/ethnicities—which represents an important shift in how dermatologists approach minority patients. Doctors should keep these unique characteristics in mind when examining and counseling nonwhite patients about prevention strategies, said Christina Lee Chung, MD, associate professor of dermatology in the College of Medicine and director of the Drexel Dermatology Center for Transplant Patients.

Read the full article at medicalxpress.com.