Rad Quotes From RAD 2023

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The 2023 Revolutionizing Atopic Dermatitis (RAD) Conference took place in Washington, DC, from April 29th to May 1st. Known for its specialized focus on atopic dermatitis (AD) treatment, management, and new updates, this year's RAD conference covered AD topics such as infancy, new drug approvals in 2023, long-term control, racial disparities, and late-breaking data.

Throughout the conference, the editors from Dermatology Times® spoke to expert faculty members from the conference about their sessions, but also about what they enjoyed about RAD itself.

Raj Chovatiya, MD, PhD

"Dermatology is no stranger to conferences, and we have them all. When you think about the fact that we’ve got big ones, we’ve got small ones, we’ve got niche ones, we’ve got general ones, and I feel like RAD is one of those really special conferences where we get to think about a disease state that maybe didn't necessarily get all the love for a long period of time. But now everybody wants to know more about atopic dermatitis. And I think there's a lot of power in a conference like RAD when it comes to focusing in-depth on one specific subject area where there's so much happening. Don't get me wrong, you're going to get atopic dermatitis at pretty much every dermatology conference that you get now. But really, for a high-focused concentration in updates, theory, future directions, and also thinking about some of those therapeutic updates, you can’t beat it at something like RAD."

Christopher Bunick, MD, PhD

"I think it's really exciting to be here at Revolutionizing Atopic Dermatitis or the RAD conference. It's a smaller conference, and I think there's several benefits to having the smaller conference. And that is number 1: there's a more intimate feel, right? Everyone's in the same room. You have close contact with speakers, faculty, [and] industry representatives. So I think that it's a more intimate atmosphere, and it's one that I think allows for more direct exchange with people. Maybe at a larger meeting, you have difficulty speaking with some of the people doing the research or the faculty presenting the research. And I think here at RAD, what's really unique is there's a lot of face-to-face interaction with the people that are really driving forward the transformative care of our atopic dermatitis patients, and I think that's a real value of being here at RAD."

Anna De Benedetto, MD

"It's a little bit [of a] different conference compared to others, but the fact that there are a lot of experts in the area and their expertise is a little bit different. It goes from clinical treatment to more pathophysiology to larger clinical trials, and more clinical trials, it's really nice. We have pediatric dermatology and allergy with interests in atopic dermatitis. I really think the input from everyone has been really interesting and to learn from everyone."

Melinda Gooderham, MSc, MD, FRCPC

"The benefits of a smaller conference for me is really just getting to chat with everyone, even from when I walked up to the desk to get my badge, they knew who I was, they knew my name before I even opened my mouth, so you don't get that at an AAD or an EADV. So that personal touch and the saying where everyone knows your name, I feel like you can just stop and chat with people you would never have even seen at one of the bigger meetings, and it's also a group of like-minded individuals, right? We all have the same goal in mind. We have the same interests and it's really nice to all be in one room together with a common goal."

Jonathan Silverberg, MD, PhD, MPH

"Being together again, in person, first of all, it's a whole different ballgame. When we're together in person, we get to interact. I would argue it's a more enjoyable learning experience and more effective learning experience. But we're going to also have the ability to cover so much more ground in terms of some of the updates and different key patient subsets that we should be thinking about in clinical practice."

Andrew Alexis, MD, MPH

"Meetings like RAD provide a unique opportunity to hear valuable updates in AD from leading experts in a more intimate and interactive setting than larger-scale conferences. Also, having many expert panels allows for insightful dialogue and commentary from the faculty as well as many opportunities for the audience to ask questions."