About
Due to a shortage of Dermatologists in the Twin Ports, a patient in need of dermatology care must wait many months before being seen by a dermatology care provider. Heather and Anthony Smith are all-too familiar with this troubling statistic; after discovering a worrisome mole, Anthony’s mother was told it would take 9-12 months before she could be seen by a Dermatologist in Duluth. When Heather heard this, she decided to take action and screen it herself. The mole ended up being Melanoma, the most serious type of skin cancer.
Had Heather’s mother-in-law waited much longer to be screened, the results could have been life-threatening. With another Dermatology clinic in the Twin Ports, wait-time for patients could be drastically reduced.
Although the experience was frightening, it was also motivating. Heather and Anthony decided to leave the Twin Cities and move to Duluth, where they opened Twin Ports Dermatology. Their goal is to offer accessible, quality dermatological care, which will in turn reduce the mortality and morbidity of skin cancer in the Northland.
