The Vitiligo
Innovators Program™

Erika Page is a patient advocate and the Founder and Editor of Living Dappled, a media brand and digital community for women with vitiligo. After getting vitiligo at the age of seven, she lost 100% of her skin’s pigment over 25 years; she founded the platform to help educate, support and inspire the 1% of the population with this condition. Erika has spoken at the U.S. World Vitiligo Day conference and has been featured in PEOPLE, WebMD and Love What Matters.

Melissa Hughley is a wife and mother of three, an entrepreneur turned influencer and vitiligo advocate. With a mission to encourage people living with any skin condition to live an authentic and unapologetic life, Melissa has used her platform to empower her audience to do the same. Melissa believes that visibility will help normalize vitiligo, and in connection with others in the community, can help close those gaps of uncertainty, lack of knowledge, self esteem issues or fears associated with having a skin condition such as vitiligo. This has fueled her commitment to continue to help people living with not only vitiligo but any visible skin condition.

Dr. Richard Huggins is dedicated to serving the vitiligo community through a variety of different roles. He is a dermatologist in the Vitiligo Research and Treatment Center at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, Michigan; medical director of V-Strong, a vitiligo support community in southeast Michigan; and the lead for the vitiligo support group section of the Global Vitiligo Foundation. Vitiligo is Dr. Huggins’ primary clinical focus. He runs a vitiligo clinic, participates in clinical trials and contributes to ongoing research in the field. He has also authored peer-reviewed research articles and textbook chapters on the condition, as well as presented at national and international medical conferences. Dr. Huggins is especially passionate about support organizations for people with vitiligo. He works to foster collaboration among support groups and strengthen connections between individuals with vitiligo and the medical community. He also mentors medical students interested in vitiligo, connecting them with support organizations that can benefit from their involvement.

Dr. Heli Patel is a medical resident and graduate of Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, PA. Her clinical and research interests include chronic debilitating conditions such as vitiligo and alopecia areata. She has completed a clinical trials research fellowship at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, NC, where she investigated barriers to medication adherence. She has published numerous peer-reviewed papers in top journals and serves as a peer reviewer for academic journals. She has worked extensively in the global health setting, including traveling to expand access to medical services in rural areas and giving invited talks at national conferences. She is also a children's book writer and illustrator. She is the founder of a non-profit organization and holds a patent for a medical device. Most importantly, she is incredibly passionate about vitiligo, a condition that affects a disproportionate number of South Asians.

Dr. Heather Woolery-Lloyd is an internationally recognized expert in skin of color. She lectures nationally and internationally on skin of color. Dr. Woolery-Lloyd participates extensively in clinical research, serving as an investigator for clinical trials with an emphasis on increasing inclusion of skin of color patients. She has authored over 70 peer-reviewed papers and has also been featured as an expert dermatologist in various publications including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and Forbes. Dr. Woolery-Lloyd is an active member of the Skin of Color Society and the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) where she was recently honored with the AAD's Presidential Citation for her commitment to education and research in dermatology.