GP won’t refer me - Concerned about possible skin cancer

[SalIy]

Hi,

I’ve got a dry, itchy and red raised bit of skin that seemed to appear overnight on my arm. It has spread a bit over the last few weeks. I didn’t give it any thought until my mother, who is a nurse, said she was concerned it looks like a possible melanoma. She’s not one to say something like that flippantly.

I spoke to the GP on the phone today but he refused to refer me. He said it was extremely unlikely to be anything to worry about and suggested I keep an eye on it despite not even seeing it. He said in all his years he only comes by a handful of cases max in any given year. I think he was put off by my age (24) and life style (don’t drink, don’t go out trying to get a tan etc.).

Obviously I’m aware it is unlikely to be skin cancer but I’ve heard horror stories about cancer being missed in young people because the GP thinks they are too young.

Any ideas what I can do? Should I just keep an eye on it? Or should I consider going private? I have anxiety so I am terrible at standing up for myself :(

Does your GP do online consultations where you can send in a photo? You can do that, or ask to see another gp.

Go to another GP. My stepfather had melanoma and it’s not that uncommon. It’s pretty much curable if treated early enough. Very unpleasant treatment later on.

Thanks for replying! To my knowledge they don’t do online consultations. When I call up I’m just assigned a GP at random for a 10 minute call, although the one this morning was more like 2 minutes.

@Dynamicsloth Thanks for the reply. I know this may sound stupid but can you just switch to any GP whenever you want? Are there not waiting lists? I’ve been with the same GP surgery since I was a newborn 😅

@Dynamicsloth PS I hope your stepfather is okay.

GPs should have a text or email function where you can send pictures via a secure link. Otherwise, there's an online mole/skin check company you can send pictures to for this kind of review. Think it's fairly inexpensive.

@PragmaticWench Thanks! I’m going to Google that.

Go to another GP, pronto. I saw a news article a while back about an Australian woman with terminal cancer because doctors had ignored her symptoms until it was two late to do anything about it. She was only in her twenties, IIRC, and had a two year old son.

Terminal skin cancer, that should say

Have you taken some pics and measurements?

I'm not brilliant at asserting myself so would probably pay for something like MySkinDoctor (£105 for a dermatologist to review your skin image). But I think you should ask for a face to face appointment.

When you phone up to make an appointment, you should be able to request not talking the GP you spoke to previously.

You could also pop into a pharmacy and see what they think, then you can tell the GP you've explored that avenue already

It just sounds like dermatitis.
Is it red/pink rather than darker brown/black?

Buy some hydrocortisone cream and use it for a few days. If it's just a skin irritation then it'll clear up.

You could firstly try your local pharmacy,if they say,they are concerned,you have a bit more back up when ringing GP. There is a mole checker app
It is meant to be quite accurate
I actually went to a free mole check day,also was nursing at that point and it was doing the classic growing fast, itching, bleeding.

I think some Boots do some kind mole scanning, maybe that might be worth considering,

@BeforeGodAndAllTheFish

It just sounds like dermatitis. Is it red/pink rather than darker brown/black?

Buy some hydrocortisone cream and use it for a few days. If it's just a skin irritation then it'll clear up.

I'd do that first too.

If it's new and changing shape you should definitely have it checked out. And sun exposure is not always a factor! I had melanoma on my breast - not an area ever exposed to the sun.

Try another GP if you can or call back - you might have to make a bit of a nuisance of yourself!

I had a malignant melanoma diagnosed at age 22. I have psoriasis and had noticed a strange shaped, dark coloured spot appear overnight. Just looking at it worried me so much I went straight to GP. Urgent referral to dermatologist for a biopsy...like the next day. Confirmed malignant. Then had an operation to remove all surrounding tissue. Trust your instincts if it's worrying you ask to be seen in person. Hope you are ok x

@Lillipops @ronswansonstache That must of been such a shock for both of you, and very unexpected. I hope you are both okay now.

Thanks to everyone for your advice. I downloaded the mole AI app and it came back as 75% concerning. @purplecorkheart Thank you for that, I’ve booked an appointment for Wednesday. It was £35, which is worth it for the reassurance.

@SalIy it was really scary at the time but they dealt with it really quickly and kept an eye on me. I didn't need any further treatment other than have a couple of moles removed that I didn't like the look of...they were just normal moles 😬 I hope you get sorted xx

Treated with two lots of surgery and discharged in 2020. So far so good! 🤞🏻

I have reflected on being 'lucky' to have got my diagnosis before covid hit as I imagine I'd find it hard to get past the first hurdle of a GPs appointment now. Once it was flagged up as potential melanoma I was treated within two weeks.

Good luck with it - hopefully it will be nothing to worry about xxx

I'm at the docs tomorrow as I sent pics in of a mole that is raised and bit rough on top. I have history of basal cell carcinoma that resulted in surgery to repair my face and nose in 2020.

I had a txt from surgery and told to book face to face appointment.

Bit worried about what might be ahead of me if it needs a referral back to hospital.

@cobblers123 I hope all goes well for you. You will be in my thoughts tomorrow x

Thank you Sally, yes I really don't want to be back in hospital again like last time.

It's unlikely to be a melanoma if it is pink (though people tend to think melanomas always look like moles and given your mum is a nurse she will know more than most). But it could be an actinic keratosis (non- or pre-cancerous) or basal cell carcinoma, which is a slow-growing and non-dangerous form of cancer. Both still need fixing though.

It sounds like something I had on my arm and I had to put a cream on it. There is still a mark there but it's much smaller. It was sorted on the NHS within six weeks, but that was in 2018, so pre-covid and my GP referred me without a murmur.

You've definitely done the right thing by getting it checked out and good luck with the doc. Practise what you are going to say and ask to give yourself some confidence.
Hopefully it's nothing to worry about as there are so many different skin conditions but we all Google and find the same thing.