Valerie's story

Light treatment at Barts and The London Skin Centre helped to ease Valerie Hennessy’s severe contact dermatitis so that she can use her hands and walk again.

Valerie started suffering from flare-ups of contact dermatitis on her hands and feet about 15 years ago.

The condition (also known as contact eczema) causes intense itching, sore and bleeding skin, and painful cracks in the skin.

During severe flare-ups, Valerie could hardly use her hands – just picking up a cup was very painful – and she struggled to walk.

Valerie, from east London, says: ‘If I had painful cracks on my toes, I walked on my heels. If my heels were sore and cracked, I went tip-toe. Sometimes I could hardly walk at all. It made even walking to the local shops difficult.

‘The itching was also unbearable. Even when I was out, I’d take off my shoes to rub my feet and get some relief.’

Valerie’s GP referred her to Barts and The London Skin Centre, based at The Royal London Hospital, where she was prescribed topical steroid creams and moisturisers (emollients) to help the skin heal and reduce itching and redness.

The creams helped but during severe flare-ups Valerie still suffered a lot of discomfort so she was offered ultraviolet light treatment called PUVA. This involves using a chemical called psoralens (which are found in some plants) in combination with UVA light. The psoralens make the skin respond better to the light, which slows down overactive skin cells.

Valerie had to soak her hands and feet in a bath of psoralen solution for 15 minutes and then the light treatment machine shone UVA light onto the skin (similar to a sunbed).

She has now had three treatments spaced out over several years.

Valerie says: ‘My hands and feet are a thousand times better. My hands have never been softer and my feet have improved a lot. My left foot still has some cracked skin but at least I can walk now.’

Valerie has check-ups at Barts and The London Skin Centre every three months. She says: ‘The doctors and nurses are very polite and helpful. They have tried everything to improve my skin and I’m so glad something seems to have worked.’