Michael

Piepkorn

MD

PhD

Biography 

Dr. Michael W. Piepkorn completed two residencies at UW Medicine: one in pathology in 1978 and one in dermatology in 1980. He graduated from the UW with a Ph.D. in pathology in 1980 and had a joint faculty appointment in the Department of Dermatology and the Department of Pathology during the 1990s. Dr. Piepkorn is now in private practice, and he maintains a connection with UW Medicine as a clinical professor in the Department of Medicine.

The Michael Piepkorn Endowed Chair in Dermatology Research was established in his honor effective October 1, 2011. This endowment was established to support dermatologic research at the UW by Michael Piepkorn, MD, PhD, a Clinical Professor in the Dermatology Department and a graduate of the UW Dermatology Residency Program. Dr. Piepkorn received his PhD from UW and has served for many years as a dermatologist, dermatopathologist, and investigator whose research is focused on melanoma.

Dr. Piepkorn has been a member of the Society for Investigative Dermatology and a fellow of the American Academy of Dermatology since 1981.

Education & Training

MD, University of Minnesota (1973)

PhD, University of Washington  (1980)

Residency in Dermatology, University of Washington (1980)

Residency in Pathology, University of Washington (1978)

Honors

Clinical Faculty Distinguished Teaching Award, University of Washington Residency Program (2018)

Clinical Faculty Distinguished Teaching Award, University of Washington Dermatology Residency Program (2009)

Research Interests

Dr. Piepkorn's research interests include melanoma and studies related to psoriasis

Clinical Interests

Although most of his time is now spent at Dermatopathology Northwest engaged in diagnosis of diseases from skin biopsies, he staffs a pigmented lesion and melanoma clinic at the Roosevelt outpatient facility of the University of Washington

Publications

 

Selected Publications

Pathologists' diagnosis of invasive melanoma and melanocytic proliferations: observer accuracy and reproducibility study.

Elmore JG, Barnhill RL, Elder DE, Longton GM, Pepe MS, Reisch LM, Carney PA, Titus LJ, Nelson HD, Onega T, Tosteson ANA, Weinstock MA, Knezevich SR, Piepkorn MW.BMJ. 2017 Jun 28;357:j2813. doi: 10.1136/bmj.j2813.PMID: 28659278 Free PMC article. Clinical Trial.

Assessment of Second-Opinion Strategies for Diagnoses of Cutaneous Melanocytic Lesions.

Piepkorn MW, Longton GM, Reisch LM, Elder DE, Pepe MS, Kerr KF, Tosteson ANA, Nelson HD, Knezevich S, Radick A, Shucard H, Onega T, Carney PA, Elmore JG, Barnhill RL.JAMA Netw Open. 2019 Oct 2;2(10):e1912597. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2019.12597.PMID: 31603483 Free PMC article.

Concordance and Reproducibility of Melanoma Staging According to the 7th vs 8th Edition of the AJCC Cancer Staging Manual.

Elmore JG, Elder DE, Barnhill RL, Knezevich SR, Longton GM, Titus LJ, Weinstock MA, Pepe MS, Nelson HD, Reisch LM, Radick AC, Piepkorn MW.Version 2. JAMA Netw Open. 2018 May;1(1):e180083. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2018.0083.PMID: 30556054 Free PMC article.

Malpractice Concerns, Defensive Medicine, and the Histopathology Diagnosis of Melanocytic Skin Lesions.

Titus LJ, Reisch LM, Tosteson ANA, Nelson HD, Frederick PD, Carney PA, Barnhill RL, Elder DE, Weinstock MA, Piepkorn MW, Elmore JG.Am J Clin Pathol. 2018 Aug 30;150(4):338-345. doi: 10.1093/ajcp/aqy057.PMID: 30007278 Free PMC article.

Characteristics and diagnostic performance of pathologists who enjoy interpreting melanocytic lesions.

Radick AC, Phipps AI, Piepkorn MW, Nelson HD, Barnhill RL, Elder DE, Reisch LM, Frederick PD, Elmore JG.Dermatol Online J. 2018 Jun 15;24(6):13030/qt96g5q3sz.PMID: 30142708 Free PMC article.

Population-Based Analysis of Histologically Confirmed Melanocytic Proliferations Using Natural Language Processing.

Lott JP, Boudreau DM, Barnhill RL, Weinstock MA, Knopp E, Piepkorn MW, Elder DE, Knezevich SR, Baer A, Tosteson ANA, Elmore JG.JAMA Dermatol. 2018 Jan 1;154(1):24-29. doi: 10.1001/jamadermatol.2017.4060.PMID: 29094145 Free PMC article.

Pathologist characteristics associated with accuracy and reproducibility of melanocytic skin lesion interpretation.

Elder DE, Piepkorn MW, Barnhill RL, Longton GM, Nelson HD, Knezevich SR, Pepe MS, Carney PA, Titus LJ, Onega T, Tosteson ANA, Weinstock MA, Elmore JG.J Am Acad Dermatol. 2018 Jul;79(1):52-59.e5. doi: 10.1016/j.jaad.2018.02.070. Epub 2018 Mar 7.PMID: 29524584 Free PMC article.

Skin cancer screening: recommendations for data-driven screening guidelines and a review of the US Preventive Services Task Force controversy.

Johnson MM, Leachman SA, Aspinwall LG, Cranmer LD, Curiel-Lewandrowski C, Sondak VK, Stemwedel CE, Swetter SM, Vetto J, Bowles T, Dellavalle RP, Geskin LJ, Grossman D, Grossmann KF, Hawkes JE, Jeter JM, Kim CC, Kirkwood JM, Mangold AR, Meyskens F, Ming ME, Nelson KC, Piepkorn M, Pollack BP, Robinson JK, Sober AJ, Trotter S, Venna SS, Agarwala S, Alani R, Averbook B, Bar A, Becevic M, Box N, E Carson W 3rd, Cassidy PB, Chen SC, Chu EY, Ellis DL, Ferris LK, Fisher DE, Kendra K, Lawson DH, Leming PD, Margolin KA, Markovic S, Martini MC, Miller D, Sahni D, Sharfman WH, Stein J, Stratigos AJ, Tarhini A, Taylor MH, Wisco OJ, Wong MK.Version 2. Melanoma Manag. 2017 Mar;4(1):13-37. doi: 10.2217/mmt-2016-0022. Epub 2017 Mar 1.PMID: 28758010 Free PMC article. Review.

Pathologists' Use of Second Opinions in Interpretation of Melanocytic Cutaneous Lesions: Policies, Practices, and Perceptions.

Geller BM, Frederick PD, Knezevich SR, Lott JP, Nelson HD, Titus LJ, Carney PA, Tosteson ANA, Onega TL, Barnhill RL, Weinstock MA, Elder DE, Piepkorn MW, Elmore JG.Dermatol Surg. 2018 Feb;44(2):177-185. doi: 10.1097/DSS.0000000000001256.PMID: 28858936 Free PMC article.

Accuracy of Digital Pathologic Analysis vs Traditional Microscopy in the Interpretation of Melanocytic Lesions.

Onega T, Barnhill RL, Piepkorn MW, Longton GM, Elder DE, Weinstock MA, Knezevich SR, Reisch LM, Carney PA, Nelson HD, Radick AC, Elmore JG.JAMA Dermatol. 2018 Oct 1;154(10):1159-1166. doi: 10.1001/jamadermatol.2018.2388.PMID: 30140929 Free PMC article.