Please read this before making an appointment with us:
Visiting the STAR (See, Treat, Analyse, Report) Skin Surgery Service: What you need to know before booking an appointment:
The first things to know:
The STAR service is specifically a procedure based service for the removal of long-standing benign skin lesions of cosmetic nuisance only, for ages 16 and over. It is not conducted as a general dermatology consultation clinic, nor for general mole checks, or for any urgent dermatology complaints, skin cancers, or for new or changing skin lesions of clinical concern - please see your GP if you require assistance with any of these.
The clinic is usually conducted on a see-and-treat basis and is wholly self funded and does not operate through medical insurance. We will correspond with you by email in all cases.
What happens when you contact us to make an appointment:
We are happy to receive referrals from your GP, dermatologist, or other practitioner who has seen your skin lesion and deemed it suitable for removal in our service. We are also happy to receive enquiries from patients, but if you have not had your skin lesion seen by a medical practitioner first, or if you enquire and don’t provide information on what/where your skin lesion is, then we will ask you a few more questions and may ask you for photos of your lesion, to ensure that you are suitable for our service. If not deemed suitable then you will be advised and recommended appropriately.
Please note that consultations by telephone or by email are not carried out in this service, and any correspondence made with you via email does not constitute or replace a face to face consultation, or to be considered as medical advice.
The procedures and expected costs:
The type of procedure/s and costs will depend on what/how many skin lesions you are having removed and this is discussed with you at your consultation before proceeding with your treatment. You may be asked to send photographs of your skin lesion(s) ahead of your appointment to help to advise you on the most likely procedure/cost in advance. This would be confirmed once you attend your appointment and have been examined in person. Please note that if when you attend your lesion is not deemed appropriate for removal in this service then you will be advised, and only a consultation fee will be charged.
Preparing for your appointment:
You can eat and drink normally ahead of your appointment, including if your treatment requires you to have a local anaesthetic. You are welcome to have someone accompany you and take you home, although we will usually sit them out of the treatment room during your procedure. Please do not bring children unless they can be accompanied in the waiting room as they are not permitted in the treatment room.
You can usually drive yourself to your appointment, however, if you are having a surgical procedure on your leg that requires stitches please don’t drive-get someone to bring you as you are advised not to drive home afterwards with stitches on the leg.
Understanding wound care before you have your procedure:
This is important so that you understand and follow the advised wound care instructions to allow for optimal wound healing, and to prevent complications, and this may also determine when you decide to book your appointment. For example if you have stitches you may be advised not to do exercise, heavy lifting, or swimming for up to 4 weeks. You are advised to read the wound care advice sheet before you book in/attend for your procedure.
Summary of the procedures/costs (confirmed once you attend the clinic and are examined in person):
Mole Removal:
Cost: Shave removal: £550 for one, £450 for each additional if removed in the same appointment
Excision & stitches: £695 for one, £650 for each additional if removed in the same appointment
-Cost includes the consultation, procedure, and laboratory analysis of each one.
There are 2 ways of removing moles, and this is done after an injection of local anaesthetic to the skin surrounding the lesion:
Shave removal (no stitches): Raised moles are usually removed by shaving off from the skin surface, and once removed the skin is sealed by cauterising (a heat seal), to leave a dark scab which falls off in around a week, and eventually over time heals as a flat pale scar approximately the same size as the mole was.
Excision with stitches: Flatter moles, or sometimes moles with hairs, are cut out and stitched, and this leaves a line scar which is around three times longer than the mole itself. If stitches are needed then these may need removing ( after a week if on the face, after 2 weeks if on the body). Dissolving stitches are commonly used and these do not need removing (the choice of which stitches are most appropriate is discussed at your appointment)
All moles removed are sent to the laboratory for testing, and the results are sent to you and your GP.
Cyst/Lipoma/Dermatofibroma Removal:
Cost: £695 for one, £650 for each additional if removed in the same appointment.
-Cost includes the consultation, procedure, and laboratory analysis of each one.
Removal of these lesions requires a cut and stitches to the skin, and this is done after an injection of local anaesthetic to the skin surrounding the lesion. This leaves a line scar which can be the same length, or longer, or shorter, than the lesion itself, depending on how it needs to be removed. If stitches are needed then these are removed after a week if on the face; dissolving stitches are usually used everywhere else and do not need removing. All lesions removed are sent to the laboratory for testing, and the results are sent to you and your GP.
Seborrhoeic Keratosis/Skin Tag Removal:
Cost:
Cryotherapy £245
-Cost includes the consultation and treatment
Freezing treatment (Cryotherapy, £245 per visit) is the commonest way to treat seborrhoeic keratosis and skin tags. This is cold spraying for several seconds to each lesion and they will usually drop off within 2-4 weeks. This eventually leaves a pale scar in their place. Skin tags can also be removed by snipping from the skin.
Curettage & Cautery (C&C) £550+
-Cost includes the consultation, procedure, and laboratory analysis.
Cryotherapy is not always suitable for very large or thick keratoses, in which case they may need scraping off and sealing at the base-(note this is not suitable for patients with pacemakers in this clinic). C&C is considered like a shave mole removal and may carry the same charges of £550+ depending on number of lesions removed and if sent to the laboratory for testing.
*Please note that some moles can look like skin tags, and some skin tags that are very large, will require the same as the mole shave procedure and require sending to the laboratory for testing, and in these cases may incur the same charges as mole removal.
Haemangioma/Milia/Other lesion Removal:
Cost may vary from £245 upwards depending on the procedure required/if lab testing needed.
What we need from you before you are booked in for an appointment:
-We may ask you for some more information regarding your skin lesion, and if you have seen a medical practitioner about it first
-We may ask you for some photographs of your skin lesion
-At the time of booking you in we will ask you for details including your date of birth, address, GP name and address, and also for any medical details such as your medications including blood thinners, allergies, and any medical conditions. Please note that we do not treat patients in this particular service with a known allergy to latex or to local anaesthetic, patients on warfarin, or if you have a pacemaker.
This information may be requested via the Egress secure email platform and the email will instruct you on how to open it for the first time. A copy of any correspondence letters to your GP will also be sent to you via Egress.
Payment:
Card and cash payments are accepted and payment is made at the Reception desk following your appointment
How to find us:
A few quick directions to the clinic (full address at their website www.centennialmedical.co.uk):
To find the clinic, if you find The Village Hotel at Centennial Park in Elstree, it is the next left after the hotel (you will also see a pharmacy sign). There is free parking outside the clinic. Please note-we are not the Spire Outpatient clinic at Centennial Park, which is past the turning for Centennial Medical Care. If you have any problems on the day you can call reception on 0203 327 7777.
We look forward to welcoming you to the STAR Skin Surgery Service.
If you have any questions please contact [email protected] and copy [email protected]
Please visit the website www.drsamanthonyskin.com for more information
Visiting the STAR (See, Treat, Analyse, Report) Skin Surgery Service: What you need to know before booking an appointment:
The first things to know:
The STAR service is specifically a procedure based service for the removal of long-standing benign skin lesions of cosmetic nuisance only, for ages 16 and over. It is not conducted as a general dermatology consultation clinic, nor for general mole checks, or for any urgent dermatology complaints, skin cancers, or for new or changing skin lesions of clinical concern - please see your GP if you require assistance with any of these.
The clinic is usually conducted on a see-and-treat basis and is wholly self funded and does not operate through medical insurance. We will correspond with you by email in all cases.
What happens when you contact us to make an appointment:
We are happy to receive referrals from your GP, dermatologist, or other practitioner who has seen your skin lesion and deemed it suitable for removal in our service. We are also happy to receive enquiries from patients, but if you have not had your skin lesion seen by a medical practitioner first, or if you enquire and don’t provide information on what/where your skin lesion is, then we will ask you a few more questions and may ask you for photos of your lesion, to ensure that you are suitable for our service. If not deemed suitable then you will be advised and recommended appropriately.
Please note that consultations by telephone or by email are not carried out in this service, and any correspondence made with you via email does not constitute or replace a face to face consultation, or to be considered as medical advice.
The procedures and expected costs:
The type of procedure/s and costs will depend on what/how many skin lesions you are having removed and this is discussed with you at your consultation before proceeding with your treatment. You may be asked to send photographs of your skin lesion(s) ahead of your appointment to help to advise you on the most likely procedure/cost in advance. This would be confirmed once you attend your appointment and have been examined in person. Please note that if when you attend your lesion is not deemed appropriate for removal in this service then you will be advised, and only a consultation fee will be charged.
Preparing for your appointment:
You can eat and drink normally ahead of your appointment, including if your treatment requires you to have a local anaesthetic. You are welcome to have someone accompany you and take you home, although we will usually sit them out of the treatment room during your procedure. Please do not bring children unless they can be accompanied in the waiting room as they are not permitted in the treatment room.
You can usually drive yourself to your appointment, however, if you are having a surgical procedure on your leg that requires stitches please don’t drive-get someone to bring you as you are advised not to drive home afterwards with stitches on the leg.
Understanding wound care before you have your procedure:
This is important so that you understand and follow the advised wound care instructions to allow for optimal wound healing, and to prevent complications, and this may also determine when you decide to book your appointment. For example if you have stitches you may be advised not to do exercise, heavy lifting, or swimming for up to 4 weeks. You are advised to read the wound care advice sheet before you book in/attend for your procedure.
Summary of the procedures/costs (confirmed once you attend the clinic and are examined in person):
Mole Removal:
Cost: Shave removal: £550 for one, £450 for each additional if removed in the same appointment
Excision & stitches: £695 for one, £650 for each additional if removed in the same appointment
-Cost includes the consultation, procedure, and laboratory analysis of each one.
There are 2 ways of removing moles, and this is done after an injection of local anaesthetic to the skin surrounding the lesion:
Shave removal (no stitches): Raised moles are usually removed by shaving off from the skin surface, and once removed the skin is sealed by cauterising (a heat seal), to leave a dark scab which falls off in around a week, and eventually over time heals as a flat pale scar approximately the same size as the mole was.
Excision with stitches: Flatter moles, or sometimes moles with hairs, are cut out and stitched, and this leaves a line scar which is around three times longer than the mole itself. If stitches are needed then these may need removing ( after a week if on the face, after 2 weeks if on the body). Dissolving stitches are commonly used and these do not need removing (the choice of which stitches are most appropriate is discussed at your appointment)
All moles removed are sent to the laboratory for testing, and the results are sent to you and your GP.
Cyst/Lipoma/Dermatofibroma Removal:
Cost: £695 for one, £650 for each additional if removed in the same appointment.
-Cost includes the consultation, procedure, and laboratory analysis of each one.
Removal of these lesions requires a cut and stitches to the skin, and this is done after an injection of local anaesthetic to the skin surrounding the lesion. This leaves a line scar which can be the same length, or longer, or shorter, than the lesion itself, depending on how it needs to be removed. If stitches are needed then these are removed after a week if on the face; dissolving stitches are usually used everywhere else and do not need removing. All lesions removed are sent to the laboratory for testing, and the results are sent to you and your GP.
Seborrhoeic Keratosis/Skin Tag Removal:
Cost:
Cryotherapy £245
-Cost includes the consultation and treatment
Freezing treatment (Cryotherapy, £245 per visit) is the commonest way to treat seborrhoeic keratosis and skin tags. This is cold spraying for several seconds to each lesion and they will usually drop off within 2-4 weeks. This eventually leaves a pale scar in their place. Skin tags can also be removed by snipping from the skin.
Curettage & Cautery (C&C) £550+
-Cost includes the consultation, procedure, and laboratory analysis.
Cryotherapy is not always suitable for very large or thick keratoses, in which case they may need scraping off and sealing at the base-(note this is not suitable for patients with pacemakers in this clinic). C&C is considered like a shave mole removal and may carry the same charges of £550+ depending on number of lesions removed and if sent to the laboratory for testing.
*Please note that some moles can look like skin tags, and some skin tags that are very large, will require the same as the mole shave procedure and require sending to the laboratory for testing, and in these cases may incur the same charges as mole removal.
Haemangioma/Milia/Other lesion Removal:
Cost may vary from £245 upwards depending on the procedure required/if lab testing needed.
What we need from you before you are booked in for an appointment:
-We may ask you for some more information regarding your skin lesion, and if you have seen a medical practitioner about it first
-We may ask you for some photographs of your skin lesion
-At the time of booking you in we will ask you for details including your date of birth, address, GP name and address, and also for any medical details such as your medications including blood thinners, allergies, and any medical conditions. Please note that we do not treat patients in this particular service with a known allergy to latex or to local anaesthetic, patients on warfarin, or if you have a pacemaker.
This information may be requested via the Egress secure email platform and the email will instruct you on how to open it for the first time. A copy of any correspondence letters to your GP will also be sent to you via Egress.
Payment:
Card and cash payments are accepted and payment is made at the Reception desk following your appointment
How to find us:
A few quick directions to the clinic (full address at their website www.centennialmedical.co.uk):
To find the clinic, if you find The Village Hotel at Centennial Park in Elstree, it is the next left after the hotel (you will also see a pharmacy sign). There is free parking outside the clinic. Please note-we are not the Spire Outpatient clinic at Centennial Park, which is past the turning for Centennial Medical Care. If you have any problems on the day you can call reception on 0203 327 7777.
We look forward to welcoming you to the STAR Skin Surgery Service.
If you have any questions please contact [email protected] and copy [email protected]
Please visit the website www.drsamanthonyskin.com for more information
