Improving outcomes for people with skin tumours including melanoma

SSMDT meetings should be at least fortnightly. The key roles of
the SSMDT over and above that of an LSMDT are to:
• Provide a rapid diagnostic and treatment service (ideally at the
same clinical session) for patients referred from LSMDTs.
Improving Outcomes for
People with Skin Tumours
including Melanoma
Organisation of skin
cancer services
• Provide specialist investigations and treatments not available to
LSMDTs.
• Undertake research including entering patients into NCRN- and
WCTN-approved clinical trials. Wherever possible patients
should be considered for clinical trials (e.g. adjuvant therapies or
surgical treatments). Where trials are adopted for surgical
procedures on lymph nodes, these patients should be referred
and coordinated by the SSMDT.
• Collect data for network-wide audit (Table 3).
• Play a lead role in Mohs surgery activity within the cancer
network.
3
• Play a lead role in training and teaching health professionals
about skin cancer.
The SSMDT should have access to ITU or high-dependency facilities
for major surgical cases (for example, widespread tumours affecting
the head and neck). It should maintain close contact with other
professionals who may be involved in supporting patients or carrying
out the management strategy decided by the team, so that rapid
access to their services can be provided when required.
All cases referred to the SSMDT should receive formal diagnostic
histopathological review. There may be a few exceptions; for
example, cases referred with extensive BCC for surgical
reconstruction. All cases requiring a tertiary histopathological opinion
should be supported by the SSMDT on a commissioning basis.
Patients reviewed by the SSMDT should be seen by and referred from
the LSMDT in most instances, unless the SSMDT is also the LSMDT.
However, in order to avoid undue delays some patients may be
referred directly from doctors working in the community.
Guidance on cancer services: skin tumours including melanoma
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