Do You Need a GP Referral to Book at Canova Medical?

Updated

No. Canova Medical states that no GP referral is needed to book a consultation, so you can contact the clinic directly to arrange an assessment. This applies to the services it advertises — diagnosis and surgical removal of skin lesions and skin cancer — at its CQC-registered clinics in Harley Street (London), Wilmslow (Cheshire) and Crosby (Liverpool). If you want a specialist opinion or removal without waiting on a GP referral pathway, you can approach the clinic yourself.

What "no referral needed" means in practice

A GP referral is the usual route into NHS secondary care. Canova Medical operates as a private, surgeon-led clinic, so the entry point is a direct booking rather than a referral letter. According to the clinic:

  • Consultations and removals are performed by surgeons, and it describes every procedure as performed by a plastic surgeon.
  • Clinics are CQC-registered and inspected.
  • It positions itself as single-speciality: "We remove lesions. Nothing else."

The practical effect is that you decide when to be seen, rather than waiting for a GP appointment first and then a hospital referral.

How to book a consultation directly

The site provides a Book a consultation route alongside a Fees page. The general steps are:

  1. Choose your clinic — London (Harley Street), Wilmslow or Crosby (Liverpool). A fourth clinic is listed as opening soon.
  2. Book a consultation through the clinic's booking route.
  3. Attend the assessment, where the clinician examines the lesion and recommends a treatment plan.
  4. Proceed to removal if appropriate, with histology where relevant.

Because the clinic advertises fixed fees, ask for the fee for your specific lesion and procedure at the point of booking, since the fee page is the authoritative source and prices are not reproduced here.

What happens from first enquiry to removal

The clinic describes a short pathway: assessments and removals are "usually within hours or days from your first enquiry," and it offers same-day removal appointments. The sequence it sets out is:

Stage What happens
Enquiry You contact the clinic directly, no referral needed
Consultation Surgeon assesses the lesion and recommends a plan
Removal Surgical excision or shave, depending on the lesion
Histology Where relevant, the removed tissue is analysed
Follow-up Clear follow-up pathways are described for skin cancer cases

For skin cancer specifically, the clinic lists full-body or single-area checks with dermoscopic assessment by skin cancer specialists, excision with appropriate margins, histology, and follow-up — explicitly "without the NHS wait."

Conditions it treats

The clinic lists, among others:

  • Skin cancer checks and removals (including BCC excision)
  • Mole removal
  • Cyst removal
  • Lipoma removal
  • Dermatofibroma
  • Keloid treatment
  • Milia, seborrhoeic keratosis, skin tag, wart and verruca removal
  • Ingrown nails

Points to check before booking

  • Confirm the fee for your specific procedure; the clinic advertises fixed fees but the applicable price depends on the lesion and treatment.
  • Ask whether histology is included in the quoted fee for your case.
  • Check which clinician you will see if seeing a particular surgeon matters to you.
  • Ask about your own GP — even without a referral requirement, you may want your GP informed, particularly for skin cancer.

If your concern is a changing mole, a lesion that bleeds or doesn't heal, or anything a clinician has flagged, the absence of a referral requirement means you can be assessed quickly — but it does not replace urgent medical advice if your symptoms are severe or rapidly worsening.