Vadim Lincoln, MD, FAAD, FACMS

Vadim Victor Lincoln MD is a fellowship-trained Mohs micrographic surgeon with expertise in facial plastic reconstructive surgery, minimally invasive cosmetic surgery, and wound healing biophysiology. He is double board-certified in Mohs Micrographic Surgery and Dermatology.

Dr. Lincoln earned his Bachelor’s degree in English Literature with an additional focus in Molecular Biology from the University of California, Berkeley, where he also served as a student instructor in biology. He graduated from the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California, where he discovered a novel treatment for Recessive Dystrophic Epidermolysis Bullosa (RDEB), an otherwise untreatable genetic skin fragility disorder marked by chronic non-healing wounds that eventually give rise to lethal skin cancers. This work led to multiple publications and international oral presentations, including a landmark first-author publication in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. Dr. Lincoln's proudest moment was recommending this treatment to children at Camp Wonder, where he served as a volunteer counselor for the RDEB children’s cabin.

Dr. Lincoln’s other major research contributions in medical school include the discovery of a molecular driver for wound healing (HSP-90α), discovery of a biomarker for cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (periostin), and genomic sequencing of the first known HPV-associated sarcoma. He graduated with the Dean’s Research Scholar Award, Distinction in Research, Academic Distinction, and was inducted into the Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society.

Dr. Lincoln founded UV&Me, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that educates children about sun safety and skin cancer prevention. UV&Me has chapters in California, Connecticut, New York, and Canada, and Dr. Lincoln presented the program to the National Council of Skin Cancer Prevention in Washington DC, where he garnered the support of lawmakers to further their common cause.

Dr. Lincoln completed his Dermatology residency at the University of California, San Francisco, where he was Chief Resident of Cosmetics and a resident surgical instructor. He completed his ACGME-accredited fellowship in Mohs Micrographic Surgery and Reconstructive Surgery at Cedars-Sinai, where his mentor modeled scarless surgical skills, and where he learned to employ intra-operative immunohistochemistry to treat high-risk tumors. With this training, combined with his extensive background in the physiology of wound healing, Dr. Lincoln has been able to employ cutting-edge technologies into his practice, like the use of growth-factor infused skin grafts to promote and expedite wound healing.

Dr. Lincoln now practices Mohs Micrographic Surgery, reconstructive surgery, and minimally invasive cosmetic surgery at Luminous Dermatology and Santa Barbara Skin Care in Santa Barbara and Solvang.

Education

• Fellowship: Mohs Micrographic Surgery and Dermato-oncology, Cedars Sinai and Kaiser Permanente LAMC, Los Angeles, CA
• Dermatology Residency, University of California, San Francisco, CA (Chief Resident of Cosmetics)
• Residency: Internal Medicine, Huntington Hospital, Pasadena, CA
• Doctor of Medicine, University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine, Los Angeles, CA
  • Dean’s Research Scholar Award
  • Distinction in Research
  • Academic Distinction
  • Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society
• Bachelor of Arts – English Literature, University of California, Berkeley, CA

Licensure and Certifications

• Board Certified in Dermatology

Professional Associations

• American Academy of Dermatology
• American Society for Dermatologic Surgery
• American College of Mohs Surgery

Publications

Journal Articles

• Gulati A, Lincoln V, Rosenfeld D, Seth R, Knott D, Park A, Saylor D. Non-melanoma skin cancer outcomes in Mohs micrographic surgery in young persons and trends during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dermatologic Surgery, May 2022.
• Williams EA, Montesion M, Lincoln V, Tse JY, Hiemenz MC, Mata DA, Shah BB, Shoroye A, Alexander BM, Werth AJ, Foley-Peres K, Milante RR, Ross JS, Ramkissoon SH, Williams KJ, Adhikari LJ, Zuna RE, LeBoit PE, Lin DI, Elvin JA. HPV51-associated Leiomyosarcoma: A Novel Class of TP53/RB1-Wildtype Tumor With Predilection for the Female Lower Reproductive Tract. Am J Surg Pathol. 2022 Jan 17. PMID: 35034043
• Lincoln V, Chao L, Woodley DT, Murrell D, Kim M, O'Toole EA, Ly A, Cogan J, Mosallaei D, Wysong A, Chen M. Over-expression of stromal periostin correlates with poor prognosis of cutaneous squamous cell carcinomas. Exp Dermatol. 2021; 30(5):698-704. PMID: 33450077
• Kwong A, Cogan J, Hou Y, Antaya R, Hao M, Kim G, Lincoln V, Chen Q, Woodley D, Chen M. Gentamicin therapy induces functional Laminin 332 and improves wound healing in junctional epidermolysis bullosa patients harboring nonsense mutations. Molecular Therapy. 2020 May 6; 28(5):1327–1338.
• Tang X, Chang C, Guo J, Lincoln V, Liang C, Chen M, Woodley DT, Li W. Tumour-Secreted Hsp90α on External Surface of Exosomes Mediates Tumour-Stromal Cell Communication via Autocrine and Paracrine Mechanisms. Sci Rep. 2019; 9(1):15108.
• Lincoln V, Cogan J, Hou Y, Hirsch M, Hao M, Alexeev V, Woodley D, Chen M. Gentamicin induces premature termination codon readthrough and restores laminin 332 in Junctional Epidermolysis Bullosa Cells Harboring Nonsense Mutations. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2018; 115(28):E6536-E6545.
• Bhatia A, O’Brien K, Lincoln V, Kajiwara C, Chen M, Woodley DT, Udono H, Li W. Extracellular and Non-Chaperone Function of Heat Shock Protein-90α Is Required for Skin Wound Healing. J Invest Dermatol. 2017; 138(2):423-433.

Book Chapters

• Lincoln V, Tang X, Chen M, Li W. Extracellular HSP90α Versus Intracellular HSP90β in Wound Healing and Cancer. In Alexzander A. A. Asea, Punit Kaur (17th Ed.) Heat Shock Proteins in Signaling. 2019. Dodrecht, Netherlands: Springer Nature International Publishers.