Training the Eye to See Disease On Dark Skin

Most dermatologists aren’t adequately taught to treat patients of color. UCSF’s Jenna Lester wants to fix that.

Jonas wears the close-shaved natural hairstyle that’s on-trend for many Black men. He’s been styling his hair this way for years, but during the pandemic he noticed, a few days after each shave, some spots on his scalp that hurt or even bled a little. When the pain and bleeding started to spread, he searched for Black dermatologists and found Jenna Lester, MD. “I wanted someone that had familiarity with my skin,” he says.

Lester directs the Skin of Color Program at UC San Francisco, which includes a training clinic that specializes in treating dark skin. There are just a handful of such clinics across the country, and Lester’s is the only one in Northern California.