Jenna Lester

Last updated
Jenna Lester
Alma mater Harvard University
Brown University
Scientific career
Institutions University of California, San Francisco

Jenna Lester is an American dermatologist and faculty member at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). Lester founded the UCSF Skin of Color Clinic, where she is the director. The clinic looks to address health disparities by providing dermatological care to people of color.

Contents

Early life and education

Lester was born into a family of healthcare workers. Her grandmother, Ruby Brangman, worked as a nurse practitioner, and her mother, Sharon Brangman, is a geriatrician. [1] Her grandmother was one of the first Black women to work as a nurse practitioner in the state of New York. [2] Lester realised that she wanted to be a physician at a young age; her mother set the example. [3] Their family story was featured by NPR's Story Corps. [3]

Lester earned her undergraduate degree at Harvard University. [1] She eventually studied medicine at Brown University, where she was elected to the medical honour society Alpha Omega Alpha. [4] Black people are underrepresented in medicine, and this underrepresentation gives rise to a cycle of health disparities for Black people. [5] Lester was encouraged by her father to specialise in dermatology. [6] Whilst she was at medical school, a Black patient presented with psoriasis, but none of the physicians could diagnose the condition because they had not been trained in how to identify it on dark skin. [7] In fact, in a survey of dermatologists in 2011, half of the participants reported that they could not diagnose conditions on Black skin. [8]

Research and career

Lester has worked to train physicians how to identify dermatological conditions on skin of colour and is a leader in equity in dermatology. [7] [9] [10] She established the first UCSF Skin of Color program and clinic, where she serves as the director. [7] [5] The programme focuses on research, education and clinical care. [6] Her work and research has been nationally and internationally recognized for tackling inequities in dermatology. [7] [11] In 2019, the San Francisco Chronicle described Lester as the only Black dermatologist working in San Francisco. [5] She was also featured on NPR's Science Friday with Ira Flatow where she reviewed some the differing features of skin disease across skin tones. [12]

She is a member of the American Academy of Dermatology, where she sits on the committee for Augmented Intelligence, a working group that provides expert advice regarding the use of artificial intelligence in dermatology. [13]

During the COVID-19 pandemic it emerged that occasionally coronavirus presented as skin disorders (including so-called covid toes). Whilst it was well known that coronavirus disease disproportionately impacts people of colour, in the countless scientific papers documenting the dermatological manifestations of the disease Lester noticed a distinct underrepresentation of non-white patients. [14] [15] She was the first person to publish about these disparities, and subsequently profiled in the New York Times. [7]

Select publications

Related Research Articles

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A melanocytic nevus is usually a noncancerous condition of pigment-producing skin cells. It is a type of melanocytic tumor that contains nevus cells. Some sources equate the term mole with "melanocytic nevus", but there are also sources that equate the term mole with any nevus form.

Dermatology is the branch of medicine dealing with the skin. It is a speciality with both medical and surgical aspects. A dermatologist is a specialist medical doctor who manages diseases related to skin, hair, nails, and some cosmetic problems.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Birthmark</span> Medical condition

A birthmark is a congenital, benign irregularity on the skin which is present at birth or appears shortly after birth—usually in the first month. Birthmarks can occur anywhere on the skin. They are caused by overgrowth of blood vessels, melanocytes, smooth muscle, fat, fibroblasts, or keratinocytes.

Discrimination based on skin tone, also known as colorism or shadeism, is a form of prejudice and discrimination in which people of certain ethnic groups, or people who are perceived as belonging to a darker-skinned race, are treated differently based on their darker skin tone.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Darier's disease</span> Medical condition

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seborrheic keratosis</span> Skin disease

A seborrheic keratosis is a non-cancerous (benign) skin tumour that originates from cells, namely keratinocytes, in the outer layer of the skin called the epidermis. Like liver spots, seborrheic keratoses are seen more often as people age.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fordyce spots</span> Sebaceous glands that are present in most individuals

Fordyce spots are harmless and painless visible sebaceous glands typically appearing as white/yellow small bumps or spots on the inside of lips or cheeks, gums, or genitalia. They are common, and are present in around 80% of adults. Treatment is generally not required and attempts to remove them typically result in pain and scarring.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">UV tattoo</span> Tattoo made with dye only visible under blacklight

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Dermatoscopy also known as dermoscopy or epiluminescence microscopy, is the examination of skin lesions with a dermatoscope. It is a tool similar to a camera to allow for inspection of skin lesions unobstructed by skin surface reflections. The dermatoscope consists of a magnifier, a light source, a transparent plate and sometimes a liquid medium between the instrument and the skin. The dermatoscope is often handheld, although there are stationary cameras allowing the capture of whole body images in a single shot. When the images or video clips are digitally captured or processed, the instrument can be referred to as a digital epiluminescence dermatoscope. The image is then analyzed automatically and given a score indicating how dangerous it is. This technique is useful to dermatologists and skin cancer practitioners in distinguishing benign from malignant (cancerous) lesions, especially in the diagnosis of melanoma.

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References

  1. 1 2 "SPOTLIGHT ON SOCS MEMBER JENNA LESTER, MD, WHO LEADS THE NEW SKIN OF COLOR CLINIC AT UCSF". Skin of Color Society. 2019-07-16. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
  2. ↑ "Doctors on Their Groundbreaking Multigenerational Passion for Medicine". storycorps.org. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
  3. 1 2 "For These 3 Women, Medical Careers Are A Family Affair". NPR.org. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
  4. ↑ "Dr. Jenna Lester, MD: Byrdie Beauty & Wellness Board". Byrdie. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
  5. 1 2 3 Allday, By Erin (2019-03-21). "UCSF opens 'skin of color' dermatology clinic to address disparity in care". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
  6. 1 2 "Dedicated Derms: Dr. Jenna Lester" . Retrieved 2020-09-05.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 Rabin, Roni Caryn (2020-08-30). "Dermatology Has a Problem With Skin Color". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2020-09-05.
  8. ↑ Forster, Victoria. "Dermatology Has A Race Problem. Meet One Of The Doctors Trying To Fix It". Forbes. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
  9. ↑ "Dermatology has a problem with skin colour". TODAYonline. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
  10. ↑ "The Lancet Voice". www.thelancet.com. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
  11. ↑ Singh, Neil (2020-08-13). "Decolonising dermatology: why black and brown skin need better treatment". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2020-09-05.
  12. ↑ "Jenna Lester". Science Friday. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
  13. ↑ "AAD supports high-quality, responsible applications of augmented intelligence". www.healio.com. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
  14. ↑ Lester, J. C.; Jia, J. L.; Zhang, L.; Okoye, G. A.; Linos, E. (2020). "Absence of images of skin of colour in publications of COVID-19 skin manifestations". British Journal of Dermatology. 183 (3): 593–595. doi:10.1111/bjd.19258. ISSN   1365-2133. PMC   7301030 . PMID   32471009.
  15. ↑ "Lack of darker skin in textbooks, journals harms patients of color". STAT. 2020-07-21. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
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