About

Christopher J. Miller, M.D., is the Louis A. Duhring, MD Endowed Professor in Dermatology at the University of Pennsylvania. He serves as the Director of Dermatologic Surgery, the Director of the Mohs Laboratory, and the Director of the Fellowship in Procedural Dermatology at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. His clinical expertise includes Mohs micrographic surgery, reconstructive surgery, skin cancer, basal cell cancer, squamous cell cancer, melanoma, and cutaneous oncology, with a focus on service excellence. His research expertise encompasses Mohs micrographic surgery, reconstructive surgery, skin cancer, and surgical education. Dr. Miller is actively involved in leadership roles within the university's melanoma and skin cancer initiatives, including the Penn Dermatology Oncology Center and the Melanoma Leadership Group at the Abramson Cancer Center.

Research topics

• Biology
• Virology
• Immunology
• Medicine
• Dermatology

Selected publications

• Evaluation and diagnosis of longitudinal melanonychia: A clinical review by a nail expert group

  Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology · 2025-02-27 · 13 citations

  reviewOpen access
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• 0713 Greater socioeconomic disadvantage associated with delays in Merkel cell carcinoma treatment

  Journal of Investigative Dermatology · 2025-07-21

  articleOpen access
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Navigating the Mohs Fellowship Match: What Applicants Value in Programs and Their Perceptions Regarding Fellowship Directors Preferences

  Dermatologic Surgery · 2025-09-03

  articleSenior author

  BACKGROUND: The current Micrographic Surgery and Dermatologic Oncology (MSDO) fellowship match process requires applicants and fellowship directors to rank each other with limited information. Fellowship directors receive standardized information about applicants, but applicants lack comparable program data. OBJECTIVE: To determine how MSDO applicants learn about fellowship programs, and what program characteristics influence their rank list decisions. MATERIALS AND METHODS: All MSDO applicants to the University of Pennsylvania for the 2025 to 2026 fellowship year were invited to participate in a web-based survey distributed via email. The survey evaluated applicant characteristics, preferred information sources to learn about programs, program characteristics impacting applicants rank list, and which applicant achievements and personal characteristics they believed fellowship directors valued most. Data collection concluded when 20% of the estimated 2024 national MSDO applicant pool responded. RESULTS: This survey analyzed responses from 39 MSDO applicants (26% of the estimated national applicant pool). Applicants primarily relied on interviews (84.6%), program websites (82.0%), and mentors (71.8%) for information. The most valued program characteristics were clinical autonomy, complex case volume, and prior fellows' satisfaction. CONCLUSION: Fellowship directors can improve match outcomes by providing clear, standardized information through program websites, structured interviews, and details on clinical training, case complexity, and fellow autonomy.

  PublisherDOI

• The Upper Lip Partial Subunit Superiorly Based Orbicularis Oris Sling Flap to Repair Upper Cutaneous Lip Defects

  Dermatologic Surgery · 2025-06-04

  articleSenior author

  BACKGROUND: The traditional V-Y advancement flap to repair upper cutaneous lip defects may cause a fat lip or a noticeable oblique scar within the cosmetic subunit. The upper lip partial subunit superiorly based orbicularis oris sling flap is a novel modification that reduces lip fullness and hides scars along cosmetic subunit junctions. OBJECTIVE: To describe the technique and aesthetic outcomes in a cohort of patients with upper cutaneous lip defects repaired with the upper lip partial subunit superiorly based orbicularis oris sling flap. METHODS: A retrospective case series was performed of consecutive patients with lateral upper cutaneous lip defects reconstructed with the upper lip partial subunit superiorly based orbicularis oris sling flap from 2006 to 2021. Three independent observers graded lip symmetry and rated scar appearance with the Patient and Observer Scar Assessment Scale (POSAS). RESULTS: Fifty-two patients were included. Independent observers favorably rated scar appearance with an average composite POSAS score of 6.9 (SD: 1.5) on a scale of 5 (normal skin) to 50 (worst possible scar). Lip symmetry was most commonly graded as excellent (80.8%) or good (13.5%). Surgical scar revision was infrequent. CONCLUSION: The upper lip partial subunit superiorly based orbicularis oris sling flap reduces lip fullness and hides scars along the upper lip cosmetic subunit junctions.

  PublisherDOI

• Predictors of response to full agonist opioids in enriched enrollment randomized withdrawal clinical trials: a participant-level data meta-analysis

  Pain · 2025-09-02 · 1 citations

  article

  ABSTRACT: This study aims to identify predictors of success in treating chronic pain patients with full agonist opioids by analyzing harmonized individual patient data from 5594 participants in 9 enriched enrollment randomized withdrawal clinical trials available in the Food and Drug Administration data repository. We analyzed both the participants' success with titration and continued success in the 84-day maintenance phases after randomization for those maintained on the drug. We used the full data set to assess participant demographics and subsets of data containing participant reported outcomes at baseline. Participants had an average age of 51, with 55% female participants and 66% non-Hispanic white. No clinically relevant differences were observed between participants who failed titration or those who continued on full agonists through the maintenance phase. Prediction models were developed using mixed effects logistic regression and generalized linear mixed models, with the study as a random effect to account for inter-study differences. Despite large numbers, the analysis did not reveal clinically useful prediction models for either the titration or maintenance phase; however, higher initial pain scores were modest predictors of poorer outcomes. No patient-reported outcome measures were predictive of responses to therapy. The study's limitations include its volunteer-based sample and the exclusion criteria, although excluding patients with opioid use disorder or serious psychological conditions are similar to those used in clinical care. As no strong predictive factors for successful treatment were identified, the decision to use opioids to treat chronic pain requires careful clinical judgment and close monitoring.

  PublisherDOI

• Letter to the Editor

  Annals of Plastic Surgery · 2025-09-11

  letter
  PublisherDOI

• Nail unit melanoma treated with Mohs micrographic surgery: Technique, local recurrence rate, and surgical outcomes

  Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology · 2025-01-21 · 2 citations

  articleSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• Innate protection against intrarectal SIV acquisition by a live SHIV vaccine

  JCI Insight · 2024-05-21 · 2 citations

  articleOpen access

  Identifying immune correlates of protection is a major challenge in AIDS vaccine development. Anti-Envelope antibodies have been considered critical for protection against SIV/HIV (SHIV) acquisition. Here, we evaluated the efficacy of an SHIV vaccine against SIVmac251 challenge, where the role of antibody was excluded, as there was no cross-reactivity between SIV and SHIV envelope antibodies. After 8 low-dose intrarectal challenges with SIVmac251, 12 SHIV-vaccinated animals demonstrated efficacy, compared with 6 naive controls, suggesting protection was achieved in the absence of anti-envelope antibodies. Interestingly, CD8+ T cells (and some NK cells) were not essential for preventing viral acquisition, as none of the CD8-depleted macaques were infected by SIVmac251 challenges. Initial investigation of protective innate immunity revealed that protected animals had elevated pathways related to platelet aggregation/activation and reduced pathways related to interferon and responses to virus. Moreover, higher expression of platelet factor 4 on circulating platelet-leukocyte aggregates was associated with reduced viral acquisition. Our data highlighted the importance of innate immunity, identified mechanisms, and may provide opportunities for novel HIV vaccines or therapeutic strategy development.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Principles of Skin Surgery

  2024-03-19

  other

  Abstract The acquisition of dermatological surgery skills is an integral component of dermatological training. Indeed, the increasing burden of skin cancer has resulted in competence in dermatological surgery being a mandatory requirement for all dermatologists. This chapter provides an overview of the fundamental basics of skin surgery and provides an introduction to more advanced surgical techniques, including Mohs micrographic surgery. This chapter is complemented by high‐quality videos of the surgical techniques discussed and may be accessed via the online version of the textbook.

  PublisherDOI

• Vaccine-Boosted CCP Decreases Virus Replication and Hastens Resolution of Infection Despite Transiently Enhancing Disease in SARS-CoV-2–Infected Hamsters

  The Journal of Infectious Diseases · 2024-01-12 · 4 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior authorCorresponding

  Definitive data demonstrating the utility of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) convalescent plasma (CCP) for treating immunocompromised patients remains elusive. To better understand the mechanism of action of CCP, we studied viral replication and disease progression in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)-infected hamsters treated with CCP obtained from recovered COVID-19 patients that were also vaccinated with an mRNA vaccine, hereafter referred to as Vaxplas. Vaxplas transiently enhanced disease severity and lung pathology in hamsters treated near peak viral replication due to immune complex and activated complement deposition in pulmonary endothelium, and recruitment of M1 proinflammatory macrophages into the lung parenchyma. However, aside from one report, transient enhanced disease has not been reported in CCP recipient patients, and the transient enhanced disease in Vaxplas hamsters may have been due to mismatched species IgG-FcR interactions, infusion timing, or other experimental factors. Despite transient disease enhancement, Vaxplas dramatically reduced virus replication in lungs and improved infection outcome in SARS-CoV-2-infected hamsters.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Recent grants

• NIH Grant R01AI051239

  NIH · $3.8M · 2006

• NIH Grant R01AI094620

  NIH · $3.5M · 2017

• NIH Grant P01AI066314

  NIH · $17.0M · 2010

• NIH Grant R01AI102715

  NIH · $2.7M · 2017

• NIH Grant P51RR000169

  NIH · $51.5M · 2015

Frequent coauthors

• Michael M. Lederman

  Case Western Reserve University

  89 shared

• Zhong-Min Ma

  72 shared

• Marty S. Springer

  Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA (United States)

  72 shared

• Yichuan Wang

  University of Sheffield

  68 shared

• Kristina Abel

  University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

  66 shared

• Ronald S. Veazey

  Tulane University

  65 shared

• John P. Moore

  Cornell University

  65 shared

• Dean H. Hamer

  64 shared