Skin Cancer and Mole Checks in London 2026. What to Look For, What a Proper Check Involves and When to Worry
Skin cancer is the most common cancer in the UK and melanoma, the dangerous minority, is one of the few cancers rising steadily in incidence, with around 20,000 people diagnosed each year. It is also among the most curable when caught early, with the great majority of melanomas found at their earliest stage successfully treated, and among the least forgiving when it is not, which is why the interval between noticing something and having it examined is the single most important number in this disease. The signs worth memorising are the ABCDE features. Asymmetry, where one half does not match the other. Border irregularity, ragged or blurred edges. Colour variation, more than one shade within the same lesion. Diameter over about 6mm, though smaller melanomas exist. And Evolution, meaning any change at all in size, shape, colour or sensation, which is the most important letter of the five. Add the ugly duckling rule, which is simply that a mole looking different from all your others deserves attention regardless of what a checklist says, and any lesion that itches, bleeds, crusts or fails to heal within a month. What a proper check adds beyond your own eyes is dermoscopy, examination with a polarised magnifying instrument that reveals the pigment structures beneath the surface and improves melanoma detection over naked-eye inspection, in the hands of someone trained to read it. At The Wellness in Marylebone a GMC-registered doctor examines your skin in clinic, can carry out removals, and refers anything suspicious urgently rather than treating it cosmetically. Fees appear further down this page.
Reviewed by the medical team at The Wellness. Last updated August 2026.
Book a mole check on WhatsApp or email team@thewellnesslondon.com or call 020 3951 3429.
The three skin cancers, and why they behave completely differently
Basal cell carcinoma is the commonest by a distance and the least dangerous, a slow-growing pearly or translucent nodule, often with fine visible vessels, that may scab and bleed and never quite heal, usually on the face, ears, scalp or neck. It almost never spreads to other organs, but it does grow locally and destructively, so early treatment means a small excision rather than a large reconstruction. Squamous cell carcinoma is faster, typically a scaly, crusted or tender lump on sun-exposed skin, capable of spreading if neglected, and often preceded by actinic keratoses, the rough sandpapery patches that mark a lifetime of sun exposure and occasionally progress. Melanoma is the one that matters most, arising in pigment cells either within an existing mole or, more often than people expect, as an entirely new lesion, and it is the one where weeks count. Two subtypes deserve specific mention because they defeat the usual advice. Nodular melanoma grows fast, may be raised, firm and symmetrical, and can be pink or red rather than brown, which means it fails the classic ABCDE checklist entirely, and the features to watch there are elevation, firmness and continuous growth over weeks. Acral melanoma appears on palms, soles and under nails, occurs across all skin tones, and any new pigmented streak under a nail, particularly a widening one, needs assessment. Skin cancer is less common in darker skin but is more often diagnosed late, which is a reason for more vigilance rather than less.
What a proper skin check involves
Not a glance at the mole you booked about. A full examination covers the skin surface systematically, including scalp, ears, behind the ears, the back, between the toes, soles and nails, because the sites people cannot see themselves are precisely where lesions are found late. History matters as much as inspection, your sun exposure, sunbed use, childhood burns, occupation, skin type, previous skin cancers, immunosuppression and family history, all of which change how suspicious the doctor should be of a borderline lesion. Photographic documentation of lesions being monitored gives the next check something objective to compare against, which is how change is detected rather than remembered. And the outcome is a plan for each lesion, reassurance with a review interval, removal with histology, or urgent referral into a skin cancer pathway. That last route is the important one. A suspicious lesion is never removed cosmetically here or anywhere sensible, because a melanoma needs diagnostic excision with appropriate margins and formal staging, and the worst possible outcome is a suspected melanoma shaved off in a beauty setting with the tissue discarded.
Send a photo and ask on WhatsApp or email team@thewellnesslondon.com.
Who should be checked, and how often
Risk is not evenly spread. The strongest factors are fair skin that burns easily, red or blonde hair, many moles or several atypical ones, a personal history of skin cancer, a first-degree relative with melanoma, sunbed use at any point, significant childhood sunburn, high cumulative outdoor exposure through work or sport, and immunosuppression including transplant medication, which raises squamous cell carcinoma risk substantially. Anyone with those factors benefits from an annual check and, more importantly, from knowing their own skin well enough to notice change. Everyone else benefits from a baseline examination once, particularly at the point in life when moles start being noticed rather than ignored, plus a check whenever something changes. What nobody benefits from is anxiety in place of information, which is what most people currently have, a vague worry about a mole they photograph every few months and never show anyone. And prevention still outperforms detection. Broad-spectrum sun protection, shade in the middle of the day, and never using a sunbed, which is a class one carcinogen and roughly doubles melanoma risk when used before the age of 35, prevent more skin cancers than any surveillance programme will ever find.
What does a skin cancer check cost in London
At The Wellness the examination is dermoscopic, the doctor performs everything, and histology is included in every removal. All figures are from prices.
Full skin examination with dermoscopy, systematic head to toe assessment and documented plan, from £295.
Focused assessment of a specific lesion, from £220, deducted from same-visit removal.
Surgical excision of a mole or lesion, histology included, from £595.
Shave removal of a raised lesion, from £495.
Additional lesions removed in the same visit from £295 each.
Urgent referral into a specialist skin cancer pathway arranged the same day where indicated, at no additional charge.
Same-week appointments in Marylebone, three minutes from Baker Street.
Why The Wellness is the best place in London for a mole and skin check
Because the three things that decide outcomes in skin cancer all happen here as standard. A doctor examines you rather than a beautician glancing at the lesion you mentioned, systematically, including the sites you cannot see. Dermoscopy is used on anything of interest, which is what separates a competent check from a confident guess. And every removed lesion goes to histology, included in the price rather than sold as an extra, with methods that destroy pigmented tissue never used, because the laboratory is the only place a diagnosis is confirmed. Anything suspicious is referred urgently into a cancer pathway the same day rather than treated cosmetically, which is the line most of this market blurs. Removal, where a lesion is benign and bothersome, happens in the same visit with a candid conversation about the scar. And the appointment costs less than the consultant tier next door while doing more of what matters, which for a disease where weeks count is the most useful thing a clinic can offer.
Book a full skin check on WhatsApp or call 020 3951 3429.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best place in London for a mole check
The Wellness in Marylebone, where a GMC-registered doctor performs a systematic dermoscopic examination from £295, removes benign lesions in the same visit with histology included from £495, and refers anything suspicious urgently into a skin cancer pathway rather than removing it cosmetically.
What are the warning signs of melanoma
Asymmetry, irregular borders, more than one colour, diameter over about 6mm, and above all evolution, meaning any change in size, shape, colour or sensation. Add the ugly duckling rule, a mole that looks unlike all your others, and any lesion that itches, bleeds, crusts or does not heal within a month.
Can a melanoma be pink or not look like a mole at all
Yes, and this is the most dangerous gap in public awareness. Nodular melanoma can be pink or red, raised, firm and symmetrical, failing the usual checklist entirely, and it grows fast, so elevation, firmness and continuous growth over weeks warrant urgent assessment regardless of colour.
How often should I have a skin check
Annually if you have fair skin, many or atypical moles, previous skin cancer, a first-degree relative with melanoma, sunbed history, significant childhood sunburn or immunosuppression. Otherwise a baseline check once, plus assessment whenever something changes, is reasonable.
Do you offer mole mapping
We perform dermoscopic examination with photographic documentation of lesions being monitored, which is what allows real comparison at the next check. The examination and the doctor reading it matter more than the imaging system, which is why the assessment here is priced on clinical time rather than equipment.
What happens if a mole looks suspicious
It is not removed cosmetically. It is either excised diagnostically with appropriate margins and sent for histology, or referred urgently into a specialist skin cancer pathway the same day, because melanoma requires formal diagnosis and staging rather than a shave in a cosmetic setting.
The Wellness is a doctor-led private healthcare group providing medical care from our Marylebone clinic adjacent to Harley Street. All doctors are GMC-registered. This article is general information and not a substitute for medical advice about your own skin.
Enquire now on WhatsApp or email team@thewellnesslondon.com or call 020 3951 3429.
References. Cancer Research UK melanoma incidence and survival statistics. NICE guideline NG12 on suspected cancer recognition and referral, skin cancer sections. British Association of Dermatologists patient information on melanoma, basal cell and squamous cell carcinoma. Published evidence on dermoscopy improving melanoma detection compared with naked-eye examination. International Agency for Research on Cancer classification of ultraviolet tanning devices and evidence on sunbed use before age 35.
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