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45-460: Keloid scars from their burns marred their faces and many of their hand burns healed into bent claw-like positions. These women, as well as the other citizens affected by the A-bomb, were referred to as hibakusha , meaning ' explosion-affected people ' . By 1951, Hiroshima bomb survivor Shigeko Niimoto had endured several unsuccessful Japanese operations to repair scarring on her face. Following

90-490: A piercing and even from something as simple as a pimple or scratch. They can occur as a result of severe acne or chickenpox scarring, infection at a wound site, repeated trauma to an area, excessive skin tension during wound closure or a foreign body in a wound. Keloids can sometimes be sensitive to chlorine. If a keloid appears when someone is still growing, the keloid can continue to grow as well. Keloids can develop in any place where skin trauma has occurred. They can be

135-455: A Christian church meeting with Reverend Kiyoshi Tanimoto , he invited her to a meeting of bomb-affected people. Upon arriving and finding the meeting's discussion too political for her tastes, Niimoto suggested to Tanimoto that they form a support group for the dozen or so young women who he knew with similar injuries and concerns. Soon they were meeting regularly in the basement of his church. The women had all experienced similar lives following

180-572: A collection of atypical fibroblasts with excessive deposition of extracellular matrix components, especially collagen , fibronectin , elastin , and proteoglycans . Generally, they contain relatively acellular centers and thick, abundant collagen bundles that form nodules in the deep dermal portion of the lesion. Keloids present a therapeutic challenge that must be addressed, as these lesions can cause significant pain , pruritus (itching), and physical disfigurement. They may not improve in appearance over time and can limit mobility if located over

225-431: A genetic susceptibility to develop keloids. Marneros et al. (1) reported four sets of identical twins with keloids; Ramakrishnan et al. also described a pair of twins who developed keloids at the same time after vaccination. Case series have reported clinically severe forms of keloids in individuals with a positive family history and black African ethnic origin. Histologically , keloids are fibrotic tumors characterized by

270-475: A higher risk of keloid scarring as a result of skin trauma. They occur in 15–20% of individuals with sub-Saharan African, Asian or Latino ancestry, significantly less in those of a Caucasian background. Although it was previously believed that people with albinism did not get keloids, a recent report described the incidence of keloids in Africans with albinism. Keloids tend to have a genetic component, which means one

315-413: A joint. Keloids affect all sexes equally, although the incidence in young female patients has been reported to be higher than in young males, probably reflecting the greater frequency of earlobe piercing among women. The frequency of occurrence is 15 times higher in highly pigmented people. People of African descent have increased risk of keloid occurrences. Prevention of keloid scars in patients with

360-594: A known predisposition to them includes preventing unnecessary trauma or surgery (such as ear piercing and elective mole removal) whenever possible. Any skin problems in predisposed individuals (e.g., acne, infections) should be treated as early as possible to minimize areas of inflammation. Treatments (both preventive and therapeutic) available are pressure therapy, silicone gel sheeting , intra-lesional triamcinolone acetonide (TAC), cryosurgery (freezing), radiation, laser therapy ( pulsed dye laser ), interferon (IFN), fluorouracil (5-FU) and surgical excision as well as

405-459: A larger lesion formation on recurrence. While not always successful alone, surgical excision when combined with other therapies dramatically decreases the recurrence rate. Examples of these therapies include but are not limited to radiation therapy, pressure therapy and laser ablation. Pressure therapy following surgical excision has shown promising results, especially in keloids of the ear and earlobe. The mechanism of how exactly pressure therapy works

450-453: A maiden and the American family with which she stayed. Keloid Keloid , also known as keloid disorder and keloidal scar , is the formation of a type of scar which, depending on its maturity, is composed mainly of either type III (early) or type I (late) collagen . It is a result of an overgrowth of granulation tissue (collagen type III) at the site of a healed skin injury which

495-435: A multitude of extracts and topical agents. Appropriate treatment of a keloid scar is age-dependent: radiotherapy, anti-metabolites and corticosteroids would not be recommended to be used in children, in order to avoid harmful side effects, like growth abnormalities. In adults, corticosteroids combined with 5-FU and PDL in a triple therapy, enhance results and diminish side effects. Cryotherapy (or cryosurgery) refers to

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540-473: A result of numerous brutal beatings from his former overseer. Intralesional corticosteroid injections were introduced as a treatment in the mid-1960s as a method to attenuate scarring. Pressure therapy has been used for prophylaxis and treatment of keloids since the 1970s. Topical silicone gel sheeting was introduced as a treatment in the early 1980s. Koko Kondo Koko Tanimoto (Née Koko Kondo ( 近藤紘子 , Kondō Kōko ) , born November 20, 1944 )

585-405: Is a higher tendency to develop a keloid among those with a family history of keloids and people between the ages of 10 and 30 years. Keloids should not be confused with hypertrophic scars , which are raised scars that do not grow beyond the boundaries of the original wound. Keloids expand in claw-like growths over normal skin. They have the capability to hurt with a needle-like pain or to itch,

630-647: Is a prominent atomic bomb survivor , peace activist , and the eldest of at least four children of Kiyoshi Tanimoto , a Methodist minister famous for his work for the Hiroshima Maidens . Both appear in John Hersey 's book Hiroshima . On May 11, 1955, her immediate family, including 10-year-old Koko and her father, Kiyoshi, unwittingly appeared on a television program popular in the United States at that time, This Is Your Life , where they were placed in

675-550: Is more likely to have keloids if one or both of their parents has them. However, no single gene has yet been identified which is a causing factor in keloid scarring but several susceptibility loci have been discovered, most notably in Chromosome 15. People who have ancestry from Sub-Saharan Africa , Asia, or Latin America are more likely to develop a keloid. Among ethnic Chinese in Asia,

720-466: Is speculated to be hereditary. Keloids can tend to appear to grow over time without even piercing the skin, almost acting out a slow tumorous growth; the reason for this tendency is unknown. Extensive burns, either thermal or radiological , can lead to unusually large keloids; these are especially common in firebombing casualties, and were a signature effect of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki . The true incidence and prevalence of keloid in

765-461: Is the author of the Japanese book Reaction to the flash . As of March 31, 2017, 164,621 living hibakusha were certified by the Japanese government, with an average age of 81.41. The number of living Hiroshima maidens/atomic bomb maidens is not generally published separately. The Hiroshima Maidens have been the subject of a movie titled Hiroshima Maiden (1988), depicting a particular case of such

810-521: Is then slowly replaced by collagen type I. Keloids are firm, rubbery lesions or shiny, fibrous nodules , and can vary from pink to the color of the person's skin or red to dark brown in color. A keloid scar is benign and not contagious, but sometimes accompanied by severe itchiness, pain, and changes in texture. In severe cases, it can affect movement of skin. In the United States, keloid scars are seen 15 times more frequently in people of sub-Saharan African descent than in people of European descent. There

855-460: Is unknown at present, but many patients with keloid scars and lesions have benefited from it. Intralesional injection with a corticosteroid such as triamcinolone acetonide (Kenalog) does appear to aid in the reduction of fibroblast activity, inflammation and pruritus . Tea tree oil , salt or other topical oil has no effect on keloid lesions. A 2022 systematic review included multiple studies on laser therapy for treating keloid scars. There

900-750: The Enola Gay , which dropped the Little Boy bomb on Hiroshima . At the end, the audience was encouraged to donate to the Hiroshima Maidens. In all, 138 surgeries were performed on 25 women over 18 months during their stay in the US. On their visit, the women lived at Pendle Hill, a Quaker retreat center in Wallingford, Pennsylvania. Hiroko Tasaka, interviewed by the Canadian Broadcasting Company (CBC),

945-399: The "twilight society of Hiroshima". However, they did not receive the same level of media and medical attention as the young women did, as "the presence of Japanese males in their twenties would have evoked memories of Japanese soldiers, and therefore they were not considered suitable recipients of US largess". The use of the term maiden in media shifted responsibility away from Americans as

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990-442: The US government. Moreover, when the women traveled to the US, three Hiroshima surgeons came along, to study the American plastic surgery techniques. This medical training was done free of charge to "reinforc[e] narratives of US technological prowess". Presumably there were as many scarred boys and young men as there were girls and young women from the Little Boy bomb at Hiroshima, who also could not marry and were forced to live in

1035-597: The United States is not known. Indeed, there has never been a population study to assess the epidemiology of this disorder. In his 2001 publication, Marneros stated that “reported incidence of keloids in the general population ranges from a high of 16% among the adults in the Democratic Republic of the Congo to a low of 0.09% in England,” quoting from Bloom's 1956 publication on heredity of keloids. Clinical observations show that

1080-403: The application of extreme cold to treat keloids. This treatment method is easy to perform, effective and safe and has the least chance of recurrence. Surgical excision is currently still the most common treatment for a significant amount of keloid lesions. However, when used as the solitary form of treatment there is a large recurrence rate of between 70 and 100%. It has also been known to cause

1125-628: The city being destroyed in the bombing, as he was asked to walk the studio audience and viewers through the events. Guests came forward to illustrate pivotal moments in Tanimoto's life. In the line-up were two of the Hiroshima maidens, their faces hidden behind a screen, Tanimoto, his wife, and his four children, including his daughter and eventual peace activist, Koko Kondo , were placed in the uncomfortable position of meeting with Captain Robert A. Lewis , copilot of

1170-460: The collar bone. Most skin injury types can contribute to scarring. This includes burns , acne scars, chickenpox scars, ear piercing, scratches, surgical incisions, and vaccination sites. According to the US National Center for Biotechnology Information , keloid scarring is common in young people between the ages of 10 and 20. Studies have shown that those with darker complexions are at

1215-470: The country that bombed her and was "left behind alone". None of the nearly equally disfigured young women at Nagasaki following the Fat Man fission bomb explosion on August 9, 1945, were in the group. There was no comparative Nagasaki Maiden charity organization: there was an effort from US cities to sponsor scarred survivors to travel to receive medical treatment, but this move is said to have been derailed by

1260-523: The culprits and onto the women as seekers of beauty and romantic prospects. A number of the maidens married and became mothers. Some gravitated towards social work. Toyoko Morita attended Parsons School of Design , and later became a well known fashion designer in Japan. One maiden, Masako Tachibana, married and moved to Canada. She was not able to have children. On August 1, 1995, she gave an interview to reporter Len Grant of CBC Television. She said although she

1305-408: The degree of sensation varying from person to person. Keloids form within scar tissue . Collagen , used in wound repair , tends to overgrow in this area, sometimes producing a lump many times larger than that of the original scar. They can also range in color from pink to red. Although they usually occur at the site of an injury, keloids can also arise spontaneously. They can occur at the site of

1350-480: The disorder is more common among sub-Saharan Africans, African Americans and Asians, with unreliable and very wide estimated prevalence rates ranging from 4.5 to 16%. Keloids were described by Egyptian surgeons around 1700  BCE , recorded in the Smith papyrus, regarding surgical techniques. Baron Jean-Louis Alibert (1768–1837) identified the keloid as an entity in 1806. He called them cancroïde , later changing

1395-500: The group – the Hiroshima Maidens – caught on when the women were brought to New York to undergo multiple reconstructive surgeries at Mount Sinai Hospital. This highly publicized turn of events was largely the work of Cousins, an outspoken advocate of nuclear disarmament . Tobitt, together with C. Frank Ortloff of the Religious Society of Friends , was in charge of the "very substantial problem of out-of-hospital care" which involved

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1440-580: The keloid is the most common skin condition. In the United States, keloids are more common in African Americans and Hispanic Americans than European Americans. Those who have a family history of keloids are also susceptible since about 1/3 of people who get keloids have a first-degree blood relative (mother, father, sister, brother, or child) who also gets keloids. This family trait is most common in people of African and/or Asian descent. Development of keloids among twins also lends credibility to existence of

1485-484: The name to chéloïde to avoid confusion with cancer. The word is derived from the Ancient Greek χηλή , chele , meaning "crab pincers ", and the suffix -oid , meaning "like". In the 19th century it was known as the "Keloid of Alibert" as opposed to "Addison’s keloid" ( Morphea ). The famous American Civil War -era photograph "Whipped Peter" depicts an escaped former slave with extensive keloid scarring as

1530-401: The result of pimples, insect bites, scratching, burns, or other skin injury. Keloid scars can develop after surgery. They are more common in some sites, such as the central chest (from a sternotomy ), the back and shoulders (usually resulting from acne), and the ear lobes (from ear piercings). They can also occur on body piercings. The most common spots are earlobes, arms, pelvic region, and over

1575-467: The uncomfortable position of meeting with Captain Robert A. Lewis , copilot of the Enola Gay , which dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima . Kondo has espoused global peace in such places as Iraq , and speaks frequently at American University in Washington, D.C. , her alma mater . Kondo regularly accompanies both Japanese and international students, mostly Americans, from her alma mater, on

1620-451: The war, such as being hidden from view by parents, stared at when they ventured outside, unwanted by employers, and rejected as potential wives for fear they were genetically damaged. As Tanimoto had gained some fame in America as a subject of a celebrated 1946 magazine and book article by journalist John Hersey titled Hiroshima , Tanimoto joined American journalists to create a charitable foundation to help victims of Hiroshima and "explore

1665-810: The ways of peace". Hersey, writer Pearl S. Buck , journalist Norman Cousins and Reverend Marvin Green were Tanimoto's partners in the Hiroshima Peace Centre Foundation. The group of scarred women was one of the foundation's projects, with Tanimoto calling it the Society of Keloid Girls. Following the help from newspaper columnist, Shizue Masugi, Tanimoto began raising funds to get plastic surgery for his group. Newspapers dubbed them genbaku otome , or ' atomic bomb maidens ' , and in 1952 about 20 of them were treated in Tokyo and Osaka. Plastic surgery in Japan

1710-530: The women staying in private homes in New York City as they prepared for, or recuperated from, multiple operations. Following their arrival, Tanimoto was the subject of the US TV program This Is Your Life on May 11, 1955. Thinking he was there for a news interview, Tanimoto unwittingly appeared on This Is Your Life , where his experience was highly dramatized with sound effects, dramatic music, and actual footage of

1755-601: The women to America. Janet E. Tobitt , the former Director of the Far East American Girl Scout Association in Japan, suggested he make an appeal to the editor of the Nippon Times . Cousins acted on Tobitt's suggestion, and consequently General John E. Hull of the U.S. Far East Command agreed to provide air transportation for the women. On May 5, 1955, a group of 25 women in their teens and twenties departed for America. The more specific nickname for

1800-505: Was a schoolgirl ordered to demolish buildings to create firebreaks at the time of the bombing, and the bomb's flash ignited her clothes on fire, and it made her vomit (a symptom of acute radiation syndrome ) – she was glad the US had dropped the bomb. Tachibana said it was justified because it brought the war to a quicker resolution: Without it she does not believe the Japanese would have surrendered. Instead, more lives would have been lost, possibly close to all of Japan's population. She

1845-415: Was known as "Champion Surgery Girl" because she had 13 operations, more than anyone else. One maiden, Tomoko Nakabayashi, died of cardiac arrest while undergoing a reconstruction operation on 24 May 1956; the cause was declared by the doctors to have been from complications or errors in the operation, not from radiation effects. Not all the atomic bomb maidens left for the US. Miyoko Matsubara states that she

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1890-489: Was more effective. Persons of any age can develop a keloid. Children under 10 are less likely to develop keloids, even from ear piercing. Keloids may also develop from pseudofolliculitis barbae ; continued shaving when one has razor bumps will cause irritation to the bumps, infection, and over time keloids will form. Persons with razor bumps are advised to stop shaving in order for the skin to repair itself before undertaking any form of hair removal. The tendency to form keloids

1935-446: Was not as advanced as it was in the United States so Tanimoto tried to find a way to get the "maidens" to America. Once aware of his efforts, Saturday Review editor Norman Cousins pledged to help Tanimoto. They found two doctors, William Maxwell Hitzig and Arthur Barsky of Mount Sinai Hospital, New York , who were willing to supervise the medical operations; however, Cousins met multiple rejections for financial support to transport

1980-608: Was not enough evidence for the review authors to determine if laser therapy was more effective than other treatments. They were also unable to conclude if laser therapy leads to more harm than benefits compared with no treatment or different kinds of treatment. Another 2022 systematic review compared silicone gel sheeting with no treatment, treatment with non-silicone gel sheeting and treatment with intralesional injections of triamcinolone acetonide. The authors only found two small studies (36 participants in total) that compared these treatment options so were unable to determine which (if any)

2025-407: Was one of 16 young "Hiroshima maidens" who received surgeries in Tokyo and then Osaka in 1953. After the 10 successful operations, together with two other Hiroshima maidens, they were then well enough and thus started work as live-in caretakers to disadvantaged children. When time came in 1955 to travel to Mt. Sinai Hospital in the US, unlike her two colleagues, she did not feel comfortable traveling to

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