Potential skin cancer, NHS and private waiting times

Yes, I am quite aware of that thank you.

My results will take 6 weeks but that’s due to how the tests are done and how they need to watch the cells over a short period to get an accurate diagnosis. They don’t just pop it in a drawer and ignore it.

Sadly I think it’s a mix of an increased population and dwindling staffing. They cannot cope with the amount of patients referred each week. It’s not dermatology but my local gynaecology department has roughly 150 referrals per week, that’s not including cancer pathways. This is on top of return patients. It’s not sustainable.

Yes I'm fine @Comfortable8520 It was on my face (poor old face) so I have a (neat now, but I looked like Frankenstein's monster for a bit) scar, and will always be worried another will pop up. As an adult, I'm very very careful in the sun. But I grew up in the 1970s when we were pretty much all running about in the summer with no protection. The dermatologist said it probably started then. I tell people about it all the time, to raise awareness.

I hope you are seen soon. The treatment I had under the NHS for this was brilliant really, and I'm very grateful.

I had a biopsy last week. 6 weeks from referral to biopsy but 2 appointments before biopsy stage. NHS waits for cancer aren’t bad as there’s a lot of investment in that area.

You may well have to wait that long. I had an NHS excision biopsy on Dec 6th last year and didn't get the results until Feb 16th. That's over 2 months and the wait was awful.

I am disabled.

honestly these days there is big demand for private because many people are aware of the big waits on the nhs.

i’m medically retired and in various u3a groups etc and so many people now go private for hip operation/knee replacement etc etc.

personally I just pay. I don’t have operations and similar but I do need to see consultants and nhs waits are long.

NHS is fast when it comes to cancer treatment. It kicks in quick. Id always advise to go NHS for cancer treatment as you get the backup and fast treatment. Both my parents have had cancer ..mum was seen within 48 hours and dad was having his treatment within a week.

It is stressful, especially if there's a possibility of melanoma (which is what mine was in the end). As other people have said, the others are less urgent although obviously you want them treated.

This happened to me last year, and I'm in South West London (treated by the Chelsea and Westminster hospital, under the NHS). Once I'd got a initial appt with the GP (a week), I was sent for medical photography (another week), and then saw a dermatologist (about five days later), biopsy the following week, then a two week wait for results, then plastic surgery two weeks or so later. I thought that was quite impressive - about 7/8 weeks in all.

When I had a suspect mole it was under 2 weeks from gp to removal as the skin clinic can remove it when you attend up to a certain size, you then wait 3-4 weeks for the histology report (all clear in my case) I had a follow up appointment tentatively scheduled for 6 weeks after the removal which they cancelled as it wasn’t suspicious

What happens when I am 50, 60 or 70 and my health gets worse?

It will be dire.

I didn't say it was. I said it mattered what type of cancer was suspected. None of this was in your OP or subsequent posts.

I was diagnosed with a malignant melanoma in 2022. I had to wait several weeks for a private appointment with my dermatologist (had seen her previously for other things and specifically wanted her). She took one look at the mole and organised the biopsy for the next day (which was a bit of a shock in itself), results took 10 days (due to it being an extended bank holiday) and the actual treatment (wide local excision) was three weeks after that (carried out by a plastic surgeon). My health insurer AXA covered all the costs and also covered the costs for 3 month check-ups for the following 2 years (normally 6 month check-ups for 2 years on the NHS I believe). I now pay for 6 month check-ups and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. Two months prior to my diagnosis, I had the mole checked by a mole scanning company in Cambridge who said it was absolutely fine.

I was seen and treated in 3 weeks with potential ( it wasn’t) skin cancer with Benenden and that 3 weeks included Christmas . The dermatologist I saw even treated something else that I hadn’t been referred for while I was there .

Wouldn’t it be better to try the NHS, you’ll be seen and biopsy done within the 2 weeks, removal will be very soon after. Private is way longer wait for dermatology as they’re doing so many minor things. I’ve had experience re both and nhs was 100 times better with consultants from the same team .

I’m in the Midlands and they have really long waiting lists. It’s going to be another 4 weeks until I get my results.

Dermatologists know exactly what they suspect (and schedule accordingly). The different types present very differently.