Black salve and bloodroot extract in dermatologic conditions

Due to extensive advertising of black salve's effectiveness in "curing" skin cancers and healing other skin conditions, many patients are turning to self-treating with black salve. Although black salve has not been proven to have anticancer properties, application of black salve has been shown to cause damage to healthy tissue and the need for further treatment. We describe a 35-year-old woman whose one-time application of black salve to a healing biopsy site resulted in skin erosion and formation of a dermatitic plaque with subsequent scarring. Dermatologists and other health professionals need to be aware of this increasingly popular product to be able to better inform and treat their patients.