Q&A with Becky Kamowitz of the Skin Cancer Foundation: Expanding Partnerships and Advancing Awareness in 2025

Image Credit: © Mikiodo - The Skin Cancer Foundation

In an interview with Dermatology Times, Becky Kamowitz, newly appointed Executive Director of the Skin Cancer Foundation, shares her priorities for her first year in the role, including expanding key programs like “Destination Healthy Skin,” strengthening collaborations with dermatologists, and advancing public education to improve early detection and prevention of melanoma and other skin cancers.

Q: What are your top priorities in your first year as the director of the Skin Cancer Foundation?

A: My top priority is keeping “Destination Healthy Skin” on the road. This is our mobile skin cancer screening program. We're very proud of it. The Skin Cancer Foundation owns an RV which is customized with two exam rooms on board, and each year we hit the road, traveling 12,000 miles, and we work with dermatologists around the country to provide free skin cancer screenings to the communities they serve.

So, our current RV is 14 years old, and after our 2024 program, we realized that our RV could just not go on. The cost of maintaining the vehicle after 14 years was just too much, and it really does make sense for us to purchase and customize a new RV. We are in the midst of a fundraising campaign to raise those funds so we can purchase a new RV and keep this program on the road. It's imperative that we have a safe and comfortable environment for program participants.

One of the things we did not have before on our RV that we want to add is a wheelchair lift so that we can see more people who might have some trouble getting onto the vehicle. So, we are trying to raise $500,000 to purchase and customize this new RV. I'm pleased to report that we're at 80% of our goal with just two months to go. So, we are doing everything we can to raise another $100,000 by the end of March so we can keep “Destination Healthy Skin” on the road in 2025 and keep providing these free skin cancer screenings around the country.

Q: Given your extensive background in nonprofit leadership, how do you plan to balance public education with the clinical community’s needs in the fight against skin cancer?

A: Since our founding in 1979, the Skin Cancer Foundation has worked incredibly hard to reach 3 different audiences of the public. There are the people for whom sun protection is not top of mind, for whom skin cancer detection is not top of mind, right? And so we need to tell them that these are issues that they need to be aware of and they need to protect their skin. We are trying to reach people who are worried they might have skin cancer, so we're educating them about what to look for and what to do if they spot something that's concerning. And then we are also here as a resource for people who have recently been diagnosed with a form of skin cancer.

We're incredibly proud of the increase in public awareness on the topics of skin cancer prevention, detection, and treatment, and we take a lot of credit for the public's increase in awareness in our 46 years of work. But we know that there is still a lot left to do, and we know that patients will always have questions."What does my diagnosis mean? What are my treatment options? How do I prevent future skin cancers?" So, we know how busy dermatologists are. We know how many patients they see in a day. So what we want to do is really be a partner for these dermatologists and help them educate their patients with the information they need.

We have a really robust education library that we encourage dermatologists to use in their offices. One of our bestselling brochures, "A Guide to Skin Cancers and Pre-Cancers," has everything that a patient might need to know about the different forms of the disease, how they are detected, what to look for, and what your treatment options are. We also publish "Your Daily Sun Protection Guide."This is kind of a holistic approach to sun protection, giving people information not only about sunscreen but about all the other sun protection measures that you can take. And then we have a card that's all about doing a self-exam at home. Everything you need to know about how to scan your own body from head to toe, what to look for in terms of the warning signs of skin cancer. And then in our education library, we're really trying to branch out and reach different audiences. So, we have things like kids and sun protection, what parents need to know. We have skin cancer information for people of color. We have information for men because we know men aren't necessarily taking care of their skin the same way that a lot of women do for beauty purposes. And then we have our newest brochure which is all about reaching the Hispanic community with information about skin cancer, and this one is available in Spanish as well. We're really proud of this education library. And we really encourage dermatologists to use these materials in their practice. All of this is available on our online store.

Our annual magazine, "The Skin Cancer Foundation Journal," is really a deep dive on all topics related to skin cancer. The magazine goes to every dermatologist in the country. We put out a new issue each May. And the idea is that after a dermatologist or their staff looks through it, they put it out in their waiting room for their patients to look through as well. We know that a lot of skin cancer patients are really looking at this as a resource. They kind of enjoy getting to know what they're up against on a deeper level. What we're trying to do here is empower patients to be proactive about their skin health. And these educational materials are one of the ways that we do that.

Q: “The Big See” campaign has been incredibly successful in raising awareness about early detection. How do you plan to further engage dermatology clinicians in this initiative, or others, to amplify its impact on patient outcomes?

A: "The Big See" is an awareness campaign founded in 2019. It really seeks to simplify the warning signs of skin cancer. We know that people are very familiar with the ABCDEs of melanoma. There are other mnemonic devices out there for the other forms of skin cancer, but we really sought to simplify that, and we encourage people to simply look for anything new, changing, or unusual on their skin. So, we have a public service advertisement that we have been broadcasting for the past 6 years, and we've reached hundreds of millions of people through this PSA, with nearly 260,000 airings representing nearly $69 million in donated ad value. So, we know this campaign is out there. People are seeing it. The "new, changing, unusual" message is catching on. We know that dermatologists are giving us great feedback about that message and are using it in their practice, and we're so grateful to have their support in this campaign.

As for where "The Big See" goes next, the sky is the limit. We can produce new creative. We can produce creative that speaks to different audiences potentially in other languages. We could embark on a paid advertising campaign. I would love to see billboards, like an outdoor advertising campaign with the "new, changing, or unusual" message on highways. So we have millions of ideas about how to amplify this campaign; really, it all comes down to funding for it.

We are always on the lookout for a new donor who loves this campaign or a partner who wants to work with us to help amplify it. And there's so much more we can do. There are a lot of legs to this, but again, the dermatologist support of "The Big See" program and that "new, changing, or unusual" message has been incredibly important. We're always looking for dermatologists who are passionate about skin cancer education and want to work with us to further amplify these potentially life-saving messages. There's so much work that we can do together, and we're always interested in ideas from dermatologists as far as where they see gaps in our content, if there's a question that their patients are asking that we have not given the answer to, is that something else that we can feature in one of our materials? So, I really encourage dermatologists to reach out to the Skin Cancer Foundation and tell us what you think of our campaigns, our website, and our materials, and let's see how we can work together.

Q: How does the Foundation plan to collaborate with dermatology clinicians to improve early detection strategies, particularly in high-risk and underserved communities?

A: “Destination Healthy Skin,” for example, would not be possible without the dermatologists around the country who volunteered their time. We have worked with hundreds of dermatologists since our first screening program launched in 2008, and again, we could not do this program without them. We coordinate many of these volunteers independently, but we would love to connect with more large group practices and plan more events in the communities we visit, really saturate a given market or community in events, media, and promotion and create a splash. I think there's a lot more we can do working hand in hand with these practices to really promote that the “Destination Healthy Skin” RV is in their community, and that this is the time to be checking your skin. And even if someone can't come down to the RV and can't get that free screening, hopefully they learn about the program on their local news, and it inspires them to make an appointment with their local dermatologist.

One of the limitations of this program is that the “Destination Healthy Skin” RV can only go where there are dermatologists. So that makes it tricky to host events in some of these derm deserts. So, we're always so grateful to dermatologists who are willing to travel a little bit, maybe work with us to produce an event that's a little bit further away from their practice, but where they know that people really need this service. And even just a morning or an afternoon of donated time, we can screen 40 to 50 people, and we can make a huge difference together. So, finding those dermatologists who are willing to travel a little bit with us, maybe work a little bit more deeply, collaborate a little bit more deeply on an event to reach a community that ordinarily wouldn't have access to the service, we can really make a difference together.

Q: With the upcoming relaunch of the Seal of Recommendation in 2025, how will the updated criteria better reflect current dermatologic standards for sun protection products?

A: The Skin Cancer Foundation Seal of Recommendation is a symbol that indicates a product offers safe and effective sun protection. It's one of our signature educational programs. We introduced it in 1981. To earn the Seal of Recommendation, a brand must send us test results for their sun protection products. This includes data to confirm SPF, critical wavelength levels, and water resistance claims on sunscreen, UPF claims on clothing and fabrics, or UV blockage claims on window film, window tint, or glass. We have a volunteer photobiology committee, a committee of experts who review the testing data that these brands submit. And only if a product meets our criteria for safe and effective sun protection, will we bestow the Seal of Recommendation on that product. The Seal of Recommendation is a great resource for patients looking for sun protection. Dermatologists can counsel their patients to visit our website for a list of products that hold the Skin Cancer Foundation Seal of Recommendation.

This year, we are introducing new criteria for sun protection products in the program. The minimum SPF on sunscreens with our daily use seal, meaning products meant to protect against incidental sun exposure. That minimum SPF will increase from SPF 15 to SPF 30. And then, sunscreens with our active seal, products that are meant to protect against prolonged sun exposure. The SPF will increase from SPF 30 to SPF 50. In addition to increasing the criteria for the sun protection factor, we are also increasing the requirements for UVA protection. So that's a critical wavelength that was 370 nanometers, and now it's 373 nanometers. In addition to the updated criteria for sunscreens in the program, we're increasing the minimum ultraviolet protection factor, UPF for fabric in the program from UPF 30 to UPF 50. These are criteria changes that our photobiology committee voted unanimously on to make these updates and provide consumers with the best guidance from the science that is currently available. We'll also be unveiling new artwork for the program that will make these recommendations even easier for consumers to understand and spot on packaging when they are shopping for some protective products. As always, one of our aims with the Seal of Recommendation program goes back to the holistic sun protection approach. We want people to know that sunscreen is just one part of a complete sun protection strategy, which is why products in our Seal of Recommendation program include hats, sunglasses, apparel, umbrellas, awnings, window tints, and film. And of course, we also encourage everyone to seek the shade when they can.

Q: Are there plans to expand partnerships with dermatology practices to promote evidence-based sun protection recommendations directly to patients?

A: So, we're always looking to collaborate more broadly with dermatologists around the country. When the Skin Cancer Foundation was founded, we knew that a lot more dermatologists worked independently, and we served their individualized needs in their offices. And now we know that more dermatologists are part of these larger group practices, and so we're working to align with the executives who run these practices to make sure we're offering the most relevant solutions for their needs, the most relevant information for their patients. As I mentioned, we want to engage with these larger practices, and our volunteer opportunities for "Destination Healthy Skin" provide more educational materials that serve their communities. Also, we ask dermatologists to educate their patients about our Seal of Recommendation for sun protection products.

And I would also encourage dermatologists to take a look at our digital education efforts. If you're not familiar with our website, we're also on Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and YouTube. 11 million people visit our site each year, and it's fascinating to see the topics that they're interested in and what they’re searching for. And this is information that we share with our dermatologist members. So again, they know what their patients are searching for and what kind of questions they might have for their physician when they come into the office. So all of our digital content can be shared with their audiences, linked in their own newsletters, really just trying to make sure that we have appropriate content for all seasons, making sure sun protection is a year-round conversation.

Q: Any closing thoughts or messages you would like to share with dermatology clinicians?

A: I think the most important thing to know for the Dermatology Times audience is that dermatologists are the heart of everything we do at the Skin Cancer Foundation. Not only volunteering for our programs but also serving as our media spokespersons and medical reviewers, collaborating on our digital content, fundraising on our behalf, and purchasing our patient education material, which helps fund our programs. Again, we know how busy dermatologists are. We're so grateful for the time they give to this cause and how much they care about their patients. We're very proud of our physician membership program. There are a lot of great benefits for dermatologists who join us, things like listing your practice on our website, media and spokesperson opportunities, and a membership certificate to display in your office so that your patients know how important this cause is to you. We have an annual “Champions for Change” gala in New York City each year, so our members enjoy free or discounted tickets to this event. Membership in our program is a tax-deductible business expense and again, supports our program.

So, if you are interested in learning more about our work, maybe joining our membership program, or volunteering for one of our programs, please don't hesitate to get in touch with us. You can reach us at info@skincancer.org. We'll get back to you as soon as possible. We also exhibit each year at the AAD annual meeting. I'll be there along with some members of my team and we'd love to meet you. So thank you so much for all you do in the fight against skin cancer.