Druid Hills High School junior Ellis Schroeder is growing an army of students, politicians, researchers, and volunteers in his fight to protect his fellow teens and others from skin cancer.
Ellis is even hoping fellow teenagers whom he has recruited from around the globe can soon begin working with him on a multilingual children’s book dealing with skin cancer prevention and sun protection.
“My commitment is still just as strong to this cause, if not stronger,” said Ellis, who was profiled in The Atlanta Journal’s popular Inspire Atlanta feature in July.
Since the paper reported in July on his cancer awareness campaign, the issue has become very personal for Ellis.
He’s learned that an aunt has dealt with melanoma. His mother also was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer in July.
Ellis has battled rosacea (pronounced roe-ZAY-she-uh), a common skin condition that causes blushing or flushing and visible blood vessels in the face, for most of his life. His research on that sparked his interest in the biology of the skin and skin cancer, the most common form of cancer. But he’s . And he said that sparked his interest in the biology of the skin and, ultimately, skin cancer, now the most common form of cancer in the U.S.
Ellis only recently found out that he had an aunt melanoma, and his mother was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer in late July.
“This has really taken a toll on my family, but it motivates me to continue my cancer prevention efforts,” Ellis said. “My mom’s resilience and strength are very inspiring to me.”
Ellis created the nonprofit DermaTeens earlier this year and recruited about 25 of his fellow teens from around the world to sit on his board and help him write and publish online reports about credible research into skin cancer prevention. The board has grown to about 45 members, and its work has reached about 200,000 other teens through social media, he said.
Ellis also has:
*raised money through DermaTeens to collect and purchase 50 more sun protection packages to donate to the homeless. These packages include sunscreen and hygiene products, such as those he donated earlier this year to The Atlanta Mission, but also include socks, hand-warmers, hats, and gloves for the winter. His school’s Beta Club plans to help deliver the packages, he said.
-DermaTeens (the organization I lead)
These past few months, DermaTeens has been fundraising for more sun protection packages. We were able to collect and purchase items to make another 50 bags. These will include sunscreens and hygiene products like last time, but we will be including socks and other items to keep warm (hand-warmers, hats, gloves, etc.) I am going to collaborate with my school’s Beta Club to gather a group to pack and deliver these kits.
In late-October, we hosted an online medical conference for youth with 5 other youth-led organizations from across the country. The conference, titled MedCon, consisted of talks from medical professionals and speeches from student-experts. I gave a presentation on skin cancer prevention, and DermaTeens led a petition-signing competition to urge the FDA to ban teen indoor tanning bed usage.
We also worked with the nonprofit IMPACT Melanoma on creating materials for a study collaboration between the CDC and Harvard University’s Chan School of Public Health. DermaTeens designed an infographic on skin cancer in people of color to be used in this study looking at sunscreen usage among New England teenagers. We communicated with CDC health officials, IMPACT’s team, and the Harvard researchers on this. If you would like to take a look at the infographic, let me know!
DermaTeens has also continued publishing medically-reviewed articles and creating educational projects! To date, we have reached 200k teenagers via social media and in our programming, and our team has grown to a group of 45 volunteers.
Looking ahead, we are hoping to write and publish a multilingual children’s book related to skin cancer prevention and sun protection. I will be meeting the DermaTeens Executive Team soon to brainstorm and flush out this idea. Our main efforts during the Fall/Winter regarding skin health as it pertains to sun protection is educating others on how UV radiation is still harmful, even when it is cooler outside!
-Sunscreen Dispenser Projects (IMPACT Melanoma Practice Safe Skin)
I am continuing my efforts of installing sunscreen dispensers across ATL and DeKalb. I am working with Commissioner Ted Terry to install dispensers in the Toco Hills shopping center for visitors! I met with the real estate agency in charge of the land (with the IMPACT Melanoma team as well), and I also led funding efforts. I went into local businesses to see if they would be interested in funding dispensers, and I have explored funding from the DeKalb County Office of Human Services. This year, I became a DeKalb County Youth Commissioner, and in my role, I am leading the sponsorship of these dispensers. We are hoping to install 3-4 dispensers in the center in the spring!
I am also working with DeKalb Parks & Rec and Commissioner Terry to install dispensers in golf/tennis centers as a pilot program. Because of the fact that wintertime is near, nothing is set-in-stone yet.
In September, the South Fork Conservancy held their annual Creek Rising event, and my dispenser stations were showcased there. I was lucky enough to be awarded the ‘Young Trailblazer Award’ for my efforts. I am hoping to install dispensers in other South Fork parks in the spring.
-Other Projects
I have been working with a UCLA public health student on designing and implementing a pilot Youth Council as part of the National Council on Skin Cancer Prevention’s Don’t Fry Day Campaign. We want to have this campaign reach teens, and thus we want to amass a group of passionate teenagers who can provide insights and help design teen-specific content for this skin cancer prevention campaign. In my experience, many of the leading skin cancer prevention organizations are dominated by older folks, many of whom share the efforts with people of the same age. Thus, teens are not always the recipients of these efforts! While DermaTeens aims to address this gap, this initiative has potential to make change on a much larger scale. This is in the works and we are still brainstorming, but we hope for it to be a pilot project later on this year.
Lastly, in August, I met with the chair of the Harvard SOGIE Health Equity Research Group, Dr. Brittany Charlton, to discuss her research on LGBTQ+ health and global health outcomes. We discussed cancer prevention as well, and our call ended up with conversations related to how I can get involved in their research! Fast forward to now, I am working with a postdoctoral fellow in the research group on a paper analyzing LGBTQ+ disparities in neonatal and pregnancy-related outcomes. In the future, I will be leading my own project on skin cancer disparities in LGBTQ+ communities, which is very exciting!
Story Feedback:
Many of my friends and neighbors have seen the story, and they really love it. I am very appreciative of the feature; it has led to Emory dermatologists and the previous chair of a CDC department hearing about these efforts. My teachers and counselors saw the article, and they printed it out and hung it up in the school! Thank you for providing me the opportunity to share my work; it is really motivating and inspiring to me!
Commitment:
My commitment is still just as strong to this cause, if not stronger. This is largely because, after my article came out, I learned that my aunt had melanoma a few years back (I often do not get a chance to see my aunt, so I was unaware until my dad mentioned it). Additionally, my mother was diagnosed with stage IV/metastatic breast cancer in late-July. This has really taken a toll on my family, but it motivates me to continue my cancer prevention efforts. My mom’s resilience and strength are very inspiring to me.
I apologize for how long this note has gotten. I hope it provides helpful insights for you. Please let me know if you have any follow-up questions or would like to meet with me to chat. Thank you again for everything! I greatly appreciate this. I hope you have a lovely rest of your day!
Best,Ellis SchroederEllis Schroeder
Nov 2, 2023, 10:55 AM (5 days ago)
to me
Hi there Nancy!
Apologies for the delay in my email. I hope all is well on your end. Thank you for reaching out with such exciting news! I am honored to be nominated. I have a few updates to share with you about my skin cancer prevention and public health work.
-DermaTeens (the organization I lead)
These past few months, DermaTeens has been fundraising for more sun protection packages. We were able to collect and purchase items to make another 50 bags. These will include sunscreens and hygiene products like last time, but we will be including socks and other items to keep warm (hand-warmers, hats, gloves, etc.) I am going to collaborate with my school’s Beta Club to gather a group to pack and deliver these kits.
In late-October, we hosted an online medical conference for youth with 5 other youth-led organizations from across the country. The conference, titled MedCon, consisted of talks from medical professionals and speeches from student-experts. I gave a presentation on skin cancer prevention, and DermaTeens led a petition-signing competition to urge the FDA to ban teen indoor tanning bed usage.
We also worked with the nonprofit IMPACT Melanoma on creating materials for a study collaboration between the CDC and Harvard University’s Chan School of Public Health. DermaTeens designed an infographic on skin cancer in people of color to be used in this study looking at sunscreen usage among New England teenagers. We communicated with CDC health officials, IMPACT’s team, and the Harvard researchers on this. If you would like to take a look at the infographic, let me know!
DermaTeens has also continued publishing medically-reviewed articles and creating educational projects! To date, we have reached 200k teenagers via social media and in our programming, and our team has grown to a group of 45 volunteers.
Looking ahead, we are hoping to write and publish a multilingual children’s book related to skin cancer prevention and sun protection. I will be meeting the DermaTeens Executive Team soon to brainstorm and flush out this idea. Our main efforts during the Fall/Winter regarding skin health as it pertains to sun protection is educating others on how UV radiation is still harmful, even when it is cooler outside!
-Sunscreen Dispenser Projects (IMPACT Melanoma Practice Safe Skin)
I am continuing my efforts of installing sunscreen dispensers across ATL and DeKalb. I am working with Commissioner Ted Terry to install dispensers in the Toco Hills shopping center for visitors! I met with the real estate agency in charge of the land (with the IMPACT Melanoma team as well), and I also led funding efforts. I went into local businesses to see if they would be interested in funding dispensers, and I have explored funding from the DeKalb County Office of Human Services. This year, I became a DeKalb County Youth Commissioner, and in my role, I am leading the sponsorship of these dispensers. We are hoping to install 3-4 dispensers in the center in the spring!
I am also working with DeKalb Parks & Rec and Commissioner Terry to install dispensers in golf/tennis centers as a pilot program. Because of the fact that wintertime is near, nothing is set-in-stone yet.
In September, the South Fork Conservancy held their annual Creek Rising event, and my dispenser stations were showcased there. I was lucky enough to be awarded the ‘Young Trailblazer Award’ for my efforts. I am hoping to install dispensers in other South Fork parks in the spring.
-Other Projects
I have been working with a UCLA public health student on designing and implementing a pilot Youth Council as part of the National Council on Skin Cancer Prevention’s Don’t Fry Day Campaign. We want to have this campaign reach teens, and thus we want to amass a group of passionate teenagers who can provide insights and help design teen-specific content for this skin cancer prevention campaign. In my experience, many of the leading skin cancer prevention organizations are dominated by older folks, many of whom share the efforts with people of the same age. Thus, teens are not always the recipients of these efforts! While DermaTeens aims to address this gap, this initiative has potential to make change on a much larger scale. This is in the works and we are still brainstorming, but we hope for it to be a pilot project later on this year.
Lastly, in August, I met with the chair of the Harvard SOGIE Health Equity Research Group, Dr. Brittany Charlton, to discuss her research on LGBTQ+ health and global health outcomes. We discussed cancer prevention as well, and our call ended up with conversations related to how I can get involved in their research! Fast forward to now, I am working with a postdoctoral fellow in the research group on a paper analyzing LGBTQ+ disparities in neonatal and pregnancy-related outcomes. In the future, I will be leading my own project on skin cancer disparities in LGBTQ+ communities, which is very exciting!
Story Feedback:
Many of my friends and neighbors have seen the story, and they really love it. I am very appreciative of the feature; it has led to Emory dermatologists and the previous chair of a CDC department hearing about these efforts. My teachers and counselors saw the article, and they printed it out and hung it up in the school! Thank you for providing me the opportunity to share my work; it is really motivating and inspiring to me!
Commitment:
My commitment is still just as strong to this cause, if not stronger. This is largely because, after my article came out, I learned that my aunt had melanoma a few years back (I often do not get a chance to see my aunt, so I was unaware until my dad mentioned it). Additionally, my mother was diagnosed with stage IV/metastatic breast cancer in late-July. This has really taken a toll on my family, but it motivates me to continue my cancer prevention efforts. My mom’s resilience and strength are very inspiring to me.
I apologize for how long this note has gotten. I hope it provides helpful insights for you. Please let me know if you have any follow-up questions or would like to meet with me to chat. Thank you again for everything! I greatly appreciate this. I hope you have a lovely rest of your day!
Best,Ellis Schroeder
Rising high school junior Ellis Schroeder brought a large donation in June to the Atlanta Union Mission — but not the typical offering of food, clothes or money to support the homeless.
He dropped off 50 packages filled with sunscreen, sunglasses, and other skin and healthcare products. His goal was to provide some skin protection to the homeless, many of whom spend their nights at the mission and their days on the streets in the heat and humidity that are trademarks of summers in Atlanta.
“I want to raise awareness about sun safety and provide access to skin cancer prevention,” the 16-year-old said.
Skin cancer has never affected Ellis or anyone in his family. But, for most of his life, he’s battled rosacea (pronounced roe-ZAY-she-uh), a common skin condition that causes blushing or flushing and visible blood vessels in the face. And he said that sparked his interest in the biology of the skin and, ultimately, skin cancer, now the most common form of cancer in the U.S.
In the past year, Ellis has been on a mission to educate his friends and classmates at Druid Hills High — and anyone else who will listen — about the importance of sun safety.
He has created and serves as executive director of an all-volunteer nonprofit called DermaTeens, which is dedicated to educating teens on skin health and promoting sun-safe habits and has about 30 young people from across the globe on board.
The nonprofit’s teens regularly turn out research and reports on various skin conditions and topics such as “how humidity affects your scalp” and “genetic influences on the skin.” Leary of putting out any misinformation, Ellis and his team draw on data from the CDC and other reputable organizations and have a doctor review each article for accuracy before publication.
He’s spoken about sun safety at school, created a cancer-safety webinar, set up a website and Instagram account, and reached over 100,000 people on social media.
“His drive and passion for sun safety and public health are already having a real impact,” said Deb Girard, executive director of IMPACT Melanoma, a national nonprofit dedicated to skin cancer prevention and early detection.
.
High school junior Ellis Schroeder is so committed to preventing Rising high school junior Ellis Schroeder brought a large donation in June to the Atlanta Union Mission — but not the typical offering of food, clothes or money to support the homeless.
He dropped off 50 packages filled with sunscreen, sunglasses, and other skin and healthcare products. His goal was to provide some skin protection to the homeless, many of whom spend their nights at the mission and their days on the streets in the heat and humidity that are trademarks of summers in Atlanta.
“I want to raise awareness about sun safety and provide access to skin cancer prevention,” the 16-year-old said.
Skin cancer has never affected Ellis or anyone in his family. But, for most of his life, he’s battled rosacea (pronounced roe-ZAY-she-uh), a common skin condition that causes blushing or flushing and visible blood vessels in the face. And he said that sparked his interest in the biology of the skin and, ultimately, skin cancer, now the most common form of cancer in the U.S.
In the past year, Ellis has been on a mission to educate his friends and classmates at Druid Hills High — and anyone else who will listen — about the importance of sun safety.
He has created and serves as executive director of an all-volunteer nonprofit called DermaTeens, which is dedicated to educating teens on skin health and promoting sun-safe habits and has about 30 young people from across the globe on board.
The nonprofit’s teens regularly turn out research and reports on various skin conditions and topics such as “how humidity affects your scalp” and “genetic influences on the skin.” Leary of putting out any misinformation, Ellis and his team draw on data from the CDC and other reputable organizations and have a doctor review each article for accuracy before publication.
He’s spoken about sun safety at school, created a cancer-safety webinar, set up a website and Instagram account, and reached over 100,000 people on social media.
"His drive and passion for sun safety and public health are already having a real impact," said Deb Girard, executive director of IMPACT Melanoma, a national nonprofit dedicated to skin cancer prevention and early detection.
Leaders of IMPACT assisted Ellis with his sun-safe project for the homeless and inspired him with their efforts to equip Atlanta’s Piedmont and Grant parks with sunscreen dispensers. He’s now working to place sunscreen dispensers near home, at Zonolite Park in the North Druid Hills area of DeKalb County.
That’s no small feat since it requires buy-in from park management to place the dispensers and a plan for their regular maintenance, said Laurie Seavey, IMPACT Melanoma Practice Safe Skin Program manager.
Ellis has gone out in the community to farmer’s markets and events such as the Atlanta Jazz Festival for IMPACT, talking to people about the hazards of excess exposure to the sun and telling them what they can do to protect their skin.
"What I really like about Ellis’ work is he is such an approachable person,” Seavey said.
She said Ellis is already reaching out to other communities, public health departments, and regional cancer centers to drum up support, whether it be financial or just supporting more public awareness.
IMPACT has already lined Ellis up to be an intern with a program assisting medical students interested in dermatology and working to raise awareness on college campuses and provide community skin cancer prevention programs, Seavey said.
“Ellis has really proven himself,” she said. “When he says he’s going to do something, he does it. He follows through, and he’s definitely earned trust.”
Ellis said that initially DermaTeens was only focused on the educational side of skin health, with the idea of teens helping other teens.
“However, when we noticed other barriers to skin cancer prevention (financial, cultural, etc.), we decided to create programs and initiatives that worked together with our educational activities,” he said. “I believe that in order to make a true impact, you have to be willing to approach issues from multiple angles, especially when it relates to health.”
Credit: Photo courtesy of Ellis Schroeder
Credit: Photo courtesy of Ellis Schroeder
Ellis isn’t sure whether his passion will inspire him to become a doctor, work in health with an agency such as the CDC or stay on the nonprofit side.
"I still hope in whatever work I am involved in, I am spreading the word about these causes I care about as a teenager," he said.
IMPACT’s Seavey said the passion, interest and work he puts in as an advocate of safety and cancer awareness is “phenomenal.
"It is kind of remarkable to see in someone that age," she said.
Skin Cancer Statistics
· Skin cancer is now the most common type of cancer in the U.S. (Source: National Institute of Health)
· More than two people per hour in the USA die from melanoma. (Source: American Cancer Society)
· 1 and 5 will develop skin cancer in their lifetime. (Source: National Institute of Health)
· Majority of skin cancer cases are preventable through the application of sunscreen and the practice of other sun safety habits. (Source: Centers for Disease Control)
· Community skin cancer prevention programs today could prevent an estimated 230,000 melanoma skin cancers and save 2.7 billion dollars in treatment costs by 2030. (Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
· Skin cancer rates among American adults have tripled in the last 30 years despite it being the most easily preventable cancer. (Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
· Just one blistering sunburn under 18 doubles a person’s lifetime risk of melanoma. (Source: MD Anderson)
Tips for staying safe in the sun
• Use SPF 30 sunscreen with UVA/UVB protection
• Reapply sunscreen every 2 hours, and more frequently if in the water
• Seek shade - particularly between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. when the sun is at its strongest
• Wear a hat and sunglasses with U.V. protection
• Choose UPF (ultraviolet protection factor) clothing and swimsuits
• Keep babies younger than 12 months completely covered or in the shade
Source: Impact Melanoma
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