Discussing Psoriasis Treatment Updates for 2026, With Eingun James Song, MD

At the 2026 Maui Derm Hawaii conference at the Grand Wailea hotel, a session titled ‘Psoriasis Update 2026’ was presented by several notable leaders in the field of dermatology, 1 of which was Eingun James Song, MD.1

Song, known for his role as director of clinical research for Frontier Dermatology, provided an interview to the HCPLive editorial team regarding this talk and its most notable takeaways related to psoriasis treatment options and approaches to decision-making. He was asked in this discussion about patient-reported outcomes and their role in therapeutic decisions.

“With psoriasis clinical trials, we've often relied on the body surface area and the IGA as a measure of success,” Song explained. “But what the data tells us is that even in patients who get 100% skin clearance, if you were to do what we call a DLQI, which is a [Dermatology Life Quality Index], still a significant number of these patients are saying that their psoriasis bothers them despite having completely clear or almost near complete skin clearance.”

Song highlighted this finding as evidence suggesting patient-reported outcomes such as pruritus, burning, and pain, even if they cannot be visibly observed, still impact patients. Due to this, Song believes the DLQI should be included in assessments of patient severity. He was also asked several other questions, including regarding helpful topical or systemic therapies available in the treatment armamentarium for psoriasis.2

“In the last maybe 2 or 3 years, we've made significant advancements with our topicals, specifically non-steroidal topicals,” Song said. “So we have now tapinarof as well as roflumilast cream. These are wonderful non-steroidal options that give us additional options beyond just using steroids.”

To find out more about these topics and related information, view Song’s full interview posted above.

The quotes contained in this summary were edited for clarity.

References

1. Stein Gold L, Song E, Gordon K, et al. Psoriasis Update 2026. Presented at: Maui Derm Hawaii 2026; January 25-29, 2026; Maui, Hawaii.

2. Arcutis Announces Positive Topline Results for INTEGUMENT-INFANT Phase 2 Trial of ZORYVE® (roflumilast) Cream 0.05% in Infants with Mild to Moderate Atopic Dermatitis. Arcutis Biotherapeutics. February 3, 2026. https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2026/02/02/3230196/0/en/Arcutis-Announces-Positive-Topline-Results-for-INTEGUMENT-INFANT-Phase-2-Trial-of-ZORYVE-roflumilast-Cream-0-05-in-Infants-with-Mild-to-Moderate-Atopic-Dermatitis.html.