Psycho-oncology

Clinics

Our psycho-oncology service is now accessible via video clinic as well as face-face appointments.

Since April 2020, we are equipped to offer cancer psychology appointments via the NHS ‘Attend Anywhere’ video clinic, when we consider this to be clinically safe and appropriate. Please let us know if you feel this would be suitable for you, when we are arranging your appointment.

We continue to offer face-face outpatient clinics at St Mary’s (Clarence Wing), Hammersmith (Garry Weston), Queen Charlotte & Chelsea (gynaecology outpatients) and Charing Cross (Clinic 8 Outpatients and 6 West Day Unit). The St Mary’s clinic has step access only, all others have step-free access.

For further information on our clinic locations and accessibility, please contact us on 020 3311 1739.

Meet the team

Our team provide specialist psychological advice, consultation, clinical assessment and therapeutic input for patients affected by cancer, as well as their partners, families or carers, at any point in their cancer care.

Dr Caroline Johnson, consultant clinical psychologist

Dr Anneka Holden, Macmillan clinical psychologist

Dr Stef Panescu, Macmillan clinical psychologist

Dr Sarah Noakes, Macmillan counselling psychologist

Dr Rola Gordan, Macmillan counselling psychologist

Dax Tauk, team administrator

Patient information

Before your appointment

We typically offer a first appointment within one to three weeks of referral and will prioritise patients with significant distress, pressing treatment needs and other urgent concerns. You are very welcome to bring along other people, if you want to involve them in our consultation – we will see you together and consider everyone’s perspective.

We will enclose two standard questionnaires with our appointment letter. Please complete these and bring them along to our first consultation. If we arranged the appointment directly, for example on the phone, we will ask you to fill in the questionnaires at the beginning of the consultation.

During your appointment

When you arrive, please check in and inform the receptionist of your arrival, especially if you have arrived later than our appointment time. We typically see people at the specific time of their appointment, and there is rarely any waiting at all. Equally, it may mean a briefer appointment if you arrive late, as we will need to finish on time for the next patient.

Please note that we are a teaching hospital, so healthcare professionals in training (e.g. psychology, medicine) may be present for some appointments. If you do not wish to have them in the room please let psychologist or counsellor know, that will not cause a problem.

Our appointments are typically for about an hour, but may vary by prior arrangement if necessary. For example, family and couple sessions may be longer.

We always aim to make this first consultation as focused and useful as we can. We will listen to how you are thinking, feeling and adjusting, what difficulties you are facing and what your priorities and goals are. You are welcome to bring anyone else into the consultation if you want to include them in the discussion. It is also usually helpful to hear your perspective on your cancer experience so far.

We will also ask you to complete some clinical questionnaires that will give us useful additional information, and can be prompts for you to raise your concerns. These questionnaires may be sent to you in a letter or email, to complete in advance, but if you need any help we can also do them together in the session.

After your appointment

For some people, openly discussing their thoughts and feelings at the first consultation, and getting feedback from a specialist, can be helpful and sufficient.

Equally, for other people, more sessions are needed to explore things further, develop coping skills or address more significant difficulties. We shall discuss and agree together how to proceed, for example by arranging regular psychological therapy sessions.

Most often, if we agree that further sessions are needed, this will be with a member of our team here, but occasionally we will refer to other non-cancer services (in the hospital or in the community) if it’s clear that they are better placed to help. For example, as we don’t prescribe medication, we will refer to the appropriate psychiatry service, if that’s what we agree.

Refer to this service

GP

We welcome referrals from GPs when patients are under the active care of any cancer team at Imperial. 

GP advice

We welcome contact from colleagues in primary care to discuss cases and issues relating to cancer psychological care, and aim to return emails or calls promptly. We hold a directory of cancer-specialist psychological care in the west/north west area of London, and we will do our best to help you direct referrals accordingly.

Phone: 020 3311 1739
Email: imperial.psycho-oncology@nhs.net

Secondary care

We welcome referrals from other NHS healthcare services, when the patient is currently (or recently) under the active care of any cancer team at Imperial. Referrals can be made through a clinic letter addressed to our service, or (preferably) a completed referral form (download here) emailed to imperial.psycho-oncology@nhs.net.