[ScienceChick]

I have bought and used monobenxone/benoquin for several months. I have had enormous success with it. As a scientist, I am aware of the scant scientific peer reviewed literature about this compound, and I am aware of the risks. I am Caucasian and I am using monobenzone to complete my skin lightening that I initially started with intense pulsed light/broad band light (laser) treatments which I had performed all over my body, multiple times. This laser treatment removed all of my sun spots (solar lentigos), freckles, and interestingly, any body hair that was in the area treated. To prevent additional freckles and spots from appearing in the future, I am choosing to chemically lighten my skin with benoquin and permanently remove melanin that would contribute to the appearance of these spots. For those who are curious, I am NOT albino, chalky, etc. I look entirely normal and just like what I am...a light-skinned (fair) person. I am aware of the Michael Jackson speculation, and I am aware of Dr. Vicki Ashley, who is listed on the web as someone who reported skin lightening on her own...but I am not overly interested in people I don't really know and thus cannot honestly prove/disprove what they did/report doing. I can offer what I did for my own regimen and I can tell you honestly what to expect. As a professonal trained in the science of pharamcology (this is not pharmacy) and toxicology, I think I can offer a unique perspective to this issue.
To be frank, because I TEACH MDs and PharmDs, I can tell you that they know little about these compounds. They simply do not have experience with patients who use skin lighteners because it is not terribly common. In fact, if you review the scientific literature (not the lay press) you will see what is said: most dermatologists do not have experience with these compounds and virtually NONE know of anyone in their practice who has depigmented. Thus, they really cannot confidently advise anyone.
After reading many of the threads in this site, I see a lot of misinformation and speculation. I am happy to answer questions if they are legitimate. I am not interested in fueling guesswork and unsubstantiated ideas. Scientists have an obligation to report facts and the truth, and not the special interests/opinions of others. So, you will certainly be getting straight information and if I don't know/don't have experience with a certain modality of skin lightening, I will simply say so.
I am publishing a book on skin lightening in a few months, and this is based on the scientific literature, not reports in women's magazines, advertisements from people with financial interests in certain compounds, or opinions from people who lack a scientific background....so this might provide another source of information for those interested.
So, if anyone has a real query, I am happy to address it.

-ScienceChick

 

[ScienceChick]

Sure. Happy to report what I have experienced. I, too, have guttate hypopigmentation on my back, arms, and neck. This is from having untreated cystic acne that left white, depressed scars all over my body. We could not afford acne treatment and Accutane was not on the market when I had this acne...so I had bad acne that I couldn't treat. I don't think peope will have such disasterous results with the advent of better acne care that is more accessible. Accutane was taken off the market last year, so that option is out but is replaced by other compounds/technologies.
So, these white scars, to me, are bothersome. I have had strangers approach me in the past to ask if I had a tinea infection which is a white, polka-dot fungal infection that some people acquire. This infection is magnified by a tan...the spots really stand out (it can be cured with a few applications of selsun blue).
I explain to them that I don't have tinea, but I have scars, and that these white scars are permanent and due to a destruction of the melanocyte producing cells in the skin. The destruction comes from the inflammation form the acne and the continual picking of the acne, which I did regularly...like most kids.
So, my goal with benoquin was two-fold: I wanted to stop producing more age spots (check!) and I wanted to uniformly lighten my skin to reduce the visibility of these hypopigmented spots (check!). It worked. My skin is light enough now that the "white spots" are not relaly detectable. I am sure that with more skin lightening, these spots will blend more. After all, I am removing pigment from the surrounding skin, and this should match the depigmented scars. The only caveat is that these depressed scars are slightly shiny due to collagen deposition which is the physiological manner of laying down scar tissue...so I don't expect that these scars will go away, but I do expect them to be less visible.
Frankly, I went this route to have a way to stop doing laser. My laser treatments were 300-500 per area per session. I tallied the money I spent in the past 6 years on laser, and I calculated that I spent close to 30,000 for it. It worked, and I am more than pleased for what it did for my skin. It certainly got me on the right path to keeping out of the sun (required for all laser patients...forever).
Likewise, if you start this treatment, you will have to treat your WHOLE BODY and you must avoid the sun. PERIOD. That sounds impossible, right? I live on the East Coast (beaches, beaches, beaches). I wear micronized zinc oxide on every exposed surface of my skin and then I wear pants and long sleeves...year round. Yes, I sweat like a dog in the 100-degree heat...but I console myself with the fact that I am preserving my skin.
Hope that helps. I am always willing to share my experience if it helps anyone.
Cheers!

 

[ScienceChick]

Sorry for the delay in responses. I have been out for a week with norovirus.

I will cease posting if people really believe this post is shady. I don't neeed the frustration and I am happy to share my story elsewhere. I only wanted to be helpful.

First, I am a real person (reference to shady comment). My PhD is in toxicology and pharmacology. My postdoctoral fellwoship with the FDA was in neurotoxicology. I am 40 years old. I live in the south. I am faculty at the medical university here. I am not providing more information because I have a family...you understand.

Next, the studies I have in my lap are a handful on monobenzone/benoquin that have been published. There are not many. I am sure we have all read the same literature, such as the study about monobenzone migration to the eye. If you don't know about this study, it is worth viewing. Again, it is a small n (meaning 1 person) so this is not a rigorous, double-blind, controlled study as I am accustomed to having in front of me. There are simply no studies (or none that I could find in my 7-year search) on this in that fashion. Yes, I am posting about my personal experience as well, and I state that.


For those interested:

T. R. Hedges, 3rd, K. R. Kenyon, L. A. Hanninen, D. B. Mosher, Corneal and conjunctival effects of monobenzone in patients with vitiligo. Arch Ophthalmol 101, 64 (Jan, 1983).


I was leery of jumping in on this as a scientist because I can only offer peer-reviewed data and my personal journey. I never misrepresented this.

To answer the queries I did see...

Yes being Caucasian, I don't have to worry as much about erratic depigmenting. Because you will be (ideally) mixing the monobenzone with an oil-soluble adjuvant (baby oil, etc) you will be able to literally smear this stuff everywhere, even between toes.

I have used this product for 9 months. I mix my entire 20 g tube with Neutrogena body oil (light). I have to shake it often as I use it because the pink-ish monobenzone sediments back to the bottom of the bottle. Shake, shake, squirt, use. Repeat.

I had no peeling. I am suspicious of statements of peeling. This compound is not irritiating enough to cause frank peeling. Now, if you are compounding it with tretinoin, there can be peeling and flaking. I have done this for a week or two on stubborn spots to accelerate skin turnover and lightening. I usually get a acne-like breakout, though because I tend to rub the flaking skin and irritate it.

I am now free of freckles and solar lentigos because I am pigment free. Interestingly, and I have stated this elsewhere, I am not chalky. I doubt you can tell unless you use a Woods lamp to see what I have done. None of my students know. My faculty friends don't know. They just think of me as fair or light skinned. Since I am a red-head, this is common coloration.

I went to the Carribbean after doing this...I was there a week, and I used lots of micronized zinc oxide (Ocean Potion makes a great one...blue lid and white bottom of the container) and wore a hat, long sleeves, and pants every day, all day, as I do here, in the south. I was a sweaty, hot mess.

So, I guess I made a trial run at taking this light skin where the sun is unforgivable. I did fine, and I would expect this to be my situation from now on...rigorous sun protection which is what I should have done in the first place, many years ago.

I didn't think it would work, honestly. Of course, the thing I didn't get away with is the wrinkles from the sun damage. My fine lines are still present, but you would expect that. We are only targeting color, not wrinkles.

If this thread/post is no longer welcome, I am happy to remove my listing.

Thanks for your time.

 

[ScienceChick]

In response to the poster who mentioned me "scamming":
I am not selling any product. For the record. I buy my monobenzone for about 13.00 from buy-pharma.com

I am surprised at the tone this board has taken...is this typical of threads?

I am more accustomed to discussion and conversation...not name calling and such.