Your visit to the Dermatology Clinic

You have been seen by the clinical nurse specialist / doctor today and diagnosed with:

_____________________________________________________________________

You are being referred to our surgical colleague / team who specialises in this area:

Name: _______________________________________________________________

Place: _______________________________________________________________

What happens next?

You will receive an appointment to meet your doctor for a consultation. At your consultation, the doctor will examine you and discuss any further treatment. This is also a chance for you to ask questions, such as:

• Will I have a local or general anaesthetic?

• Will I need to stay in hospital overnight?

• Will I need to arrange for someone to bring me to the hospital and take me home?

• How long will it take for me to recover after my surgery?

Please note it is unlikely that you will have surgery during your first appointment.

What happens after my first appointment?

Once you have seen the doctor, a date will be set for you to have your surgery. You may need to have a pre-assessment appointment first. At this appointment we will check your general health before surgery.

After your surgery, you may also be seen by the Dermatology team.

Will I need a follow-up after my procedure?

This will depend on the patient. We will agree a follow-up plan with you. Not every patient needs a follow-up appointment.

You may be offered a follow-up as below.

• Melanoma stage Ia: two clinic appointments, and discharge at the end of year 1.

• Melanoma stage Ib: two clinic appointments for 1 year, then yearly for 4 years. Discharge at the end of year 5.

• Melanoma stage IIa: two clinic appointments for 2 years, followed by two clinic appointments for 1 year. Then yearly appointments for 2 years, with discharge at the end of year 5.

• Melanoma stage IIb and IIc: four clinic appointments for 2 years, followed by two clinic appointments for 1 year. Then yearly appointments for 2 years, with discharge at the end of year 5.

• Melanoma stage III: four clinic appointments for 3 years. Then two clinic appointments for 2 years, with discharge at the end of year 5.

• Some patients may need life-long follow-up appointments.

• For other non-melanoma skin cancers, a separate follow-up regime may be offered.

My lesion has changed, what should I do?

Contact the Skin Cancer team via the Cancer Care Line on 01227 868666, if you notice a significant change in the:

• growth rate

• size, or

• behaviour of a lesion.

What do you think of this leaflet?

We welcome feedback, whether positive or negative, as it helps us to improve our care and services.

If you would like to give us feedback about this leaflet, please fill in our short online survey. Either scan the QR code below, or use the web link. We do not record your personal information, unless you provide contact details and would like to talk to us some more.

If you would rather talk to someone instead of filling in a survey, please call the Patient Voice Team.

• Patient Voice Team
  Telephone: 01227 868605
  Email