UCLH was recently designated the London Cancer specialist centre for the surgical treatment of head and neck cancer for the people of north and east London and west Essex. London Cancer is a partnership of academic, charity and NHS cancer specialists dedicated to providing expert compassionate care for every patient, every time.
It's a new way of organising care called an Integrated Cancer System, which enables cancer specialists at your local hospital to work in partnership with colleagues at UCLH and across north and east London to map out a comprehensive plan for your care.
If you've got a head and neck cancer you will receive the highest standards of care as close to your home as possible. This means that you will continue to have some of your cancer treatment at your local hospital, but may be seen at UCLH for surgery or other specialist treatment.
We work closely with local hospitals, GPs and other community services to ensure a smooth transition of your care between different hospitals.
We're committed to personalising your care. The latest advances in medical science mean that we're increasingly able to target therapies at individual cancers where they are most vulnerable, and to minimise damage to healthy cells to reduce the side effects of treatments.
Our personalised care also recognises that you are the expert on yourself. We want to involve you closely in the decisions about your care, and you to tell us how we're doing and how we can improve your experience. Please do let us know, and don't be afraid to ask - anything at any time. Also feel free to bring a friend or loved one along to any appointment or step in your treatment.
We want as many of our patients as possible to benefit from taking part in research. If your cancer is suitable, we'll invite you onto a clinical trial or to donate tissue samples for future research. Taking part in trials helps us to discover whether a new treatment is better than the current standard treatment and it has other benefits, including even closer medical supervision.
The head and neck pathway board is responsible for improving head and neck cancer outcomes and patient experience for local people. The pathway board is led by the Pathway Director, Mr Simon Whitley, consultant oral and maxillofacial head and neck surgeon and includes patients, primary care representatives and cancer professionals from each of our local hospitals and specialities.
In partnership with our community and healthcare professionals across London Cancer, The Head and Neck Pathway Board aims to provide the best care pathway that extends from presentation and diagnosis through to treatment and long term follow up of patients living with and beyond cancer.
- University College London Hospitals (UCLH) – Available treatments: suspected cancer diagnosis, fully comprehensive diagnostics, multidisciplinary clinics, specialist surgery, specialist oncology including radiotherapy and chemotherapy
- Barts Health NHS Trust (Barts Health) – Available treatments: suspected cancer diagnosis, fully comprehensive diagnostics, multidisciplinary clinics, specialist oncology including radiotherapy and chemotherapy
- Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust (BHRUT) - Available treatments: suspected cancer diagnosis, comprehensive diagnostics, multidisciplinary clinics, specialist oncology including radiotherapy and chemotherapy
- Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust - Available treatments: suspected cancer diagnosis, comprehensive diagnostics, multidisciplinary clinics
- Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust - Available treatments: suspected cancer diagnosis, comprehensive diagnostics, multidisciplinary clinics
- Homerton University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust - Available treatments: suspected cancer diagnosis, comprehensive diagnostics
- North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust - Available treatments: specialist oncology including radiotherapy and chemotherapy
