Referrals for suspected skin cancer are increasing across north central London and local services are coming under pressure.

To ease pressures, GPs are reminded to follow the National Institute for Health and Care’s guidance for suspected cancer before making a referral.

If you have any uncertainties about your patient’s condition, please follow the routine teledermatology pathway or access consultant connect before making a referral. 

GPs are asked to refer patients for teledermatology if they meet the following criteria:

• one or two lesions maximum (not in intimate areas)
• no risk factors or history of skin cancer
• no performance status or access needs.

These actions will help to alleviate stress on the urgent suspected cancer pathway.

In the longer term, to allow more patients to be seen, the NCL Cancer Alliance is working with Royal Free London (RFL) on a pilot for a new teledermatology service for suspected skin cancer.

A medical photographer will take high-quality images of the areas of concern, which will be reviewed by a specialist skin cancer clinician within 72 hours.

This referral pathway will be available to GPs later this year. The alliance is also working on service provision at other NCL providers. 

For further information about the new pathway, contact Tom Banks, Project Manager at RFL or Andy Murphy, Senior Project Manager, NCL Cancer Alliance.

This item was updated on 29 November 2024 to reflect the patient eligibility criteria.