Dr. Parrish, Dr. Anderson honored by national Dermatology Foundation

Discovery Award presented for their collaborative discovery of selective photothermolysis and their pioneering work at the Wellman Center of Photomedicine at MGH

John A. Parrish, MD, and R. Rox Anderson, MD, dermatology pioneers at Massachusetts General Hospital and throughout the industry, have been honored by the national Dermatology Foundation with the 2007 Discovery Award.

Dr. Parrish is now director of CIMIT, and Dr. Anderson is the director of the Wellman Center for Photomedicine at MGH. The Discovery Award, though, has much to do with their early work. Their new approach to selective photothermolysis, first explained in their landmark 1983 article, minimized or eliminated the unwanted scar damage associated with the removal of port-wine stains. Their work also opened up a wide range of therapies, including new approaches to vascular lesions, scar revision, tattoo removal, skin resurfacing, hair removal, acne treatment and glaucoma in the eye.

The award recognizes their exemplary contributions to dermatology. Foundation officials said, “This prestigious award recognizes research accomplishments with enormous impact on the specialty. It is jointly awarded this year for the landmark collaborative discovery of selective photothermolysis.”

“Drs. Parrish and Anderson’s concept of selective photothermolysis revolutionized the way physicians treat myriad skin conditions and was primary in ushering in the modern era of cutaneous laser surgery,” a foundation statement said. “Using precise microsurgery by selective absorption of pulsed radiation, it is the seminal event that led to using the medical laser to target specific chromopores in tissue.”

The two doctors have been working together for close to three decades. Dr. Parrish was a young physician not long out of the Navy when he met Anderson, a recent MIT graduate. The two found they shared a passion for light and biology.

Rox Anderson entered Harvard Medical School in 1980 at the age of 30, and when Dr. Anderson graduated the pair worked closely on discovering new ways that light can solve medical problems.

Dr. Parrish played a key role on the large multidisciplinary team that made PUVA feasible and safe – and realizing PUVA’s potential for severe psoriasis, thus revolutionizing its treatment. (PUVA is a treatment for psoriasis and other skin diseases combining the oral administration of psoralen with subsequent exposure to long wavelength ultraviolet light.) Through this project Dr. Parrish also introduced the laser to dermatology, and eventually, brought Dr. Anderson to the laser.

Their careers have remained closely tied. Dr. Parrish founded the Wellman Center for Photomedicine at MGH. The Wellman labs were established in 1974 as a division within the Department of Dermatology at MGH, the oldest and largest teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School. The laboratories grew out of research by Dr. Parrish that led to the development of a treatment for psoriasis using the photoactive drug and ultraviolet light. With the support of a grateful patient, for whom the laboratories were named, Dr. Parrish established the first academic research center devoted to photomedicine.

In 2003, Wellman underwent a significant transition. It was designated as one of five new Thematic Centers at MGH. The centers are the core of an initiative at MGH to create cross-departmental, interdisciplinary research entities to address the complex biomedical challenges of the 21st century.
Upon Wellman's thematic center designation, Dr. Parrish stepped down as director of the center and Dr. Anderson assumed this position. Dr. Parrish remains a valued advisor to the Wellman Center.

Dr. Parrish also founded the MGH-Harvard Cutaneous Biology Research Center, as well as CIMIT, the Center for Integration of Medicine and Innovative Technology.  He recently left top leadership positions at MGH and Harvard Medical School to devote himself to CIMIT.

Speaking of Dr. Anderson, Dr. Parrish said, “Rox is a very, very special person who went from being my technician to being my student to being my teacher – all in about two years! He is a very capable doctor and researcher, and he deserves to be honored by this national organization.”

Dr. Anderson said, “I would never have thought of doing any of this work with light and pulses and treating kids with port-wine stains if not for the years of getting educated and discussing really interesting questions with John about what light does in there. He has had a remarkable career, which has resulted in positive outcomes for many patients. I am glad he is being honored.”

Ilona J. Frieden, MD, professor of clinical dermatology and pediatrics, and director of the Birthmarks and Vascular Anomalies Center, University of California, San Francisco, who was chosen to present the award, said, “John Parrish and Rox Anderson richly deserve the Dermatology Foundation Discovery Award. Their concept of selective photothermolysis shifted the paradigm for how lasers and other light sources are designed for skin diseases, leading to a whole new generation of lasers for birth marks and other skin conditions. Their insights have led to better treatments and improved lives for our patients, and the hope for more to come in the future.”