The Board

Delia Sworm

Delia works as a Macmillan Skin Cancer Nurse Specialist at St Luke’s Cancer Centre, Royal Surrey Hospital, Guildford. She has over 14 years’ experience working in specialist oncology centres, including the Royal Marsden Hospital, London and Sutton sites.

In 1990, she completed a BA in Psychology at the University of Leeds. She undertook a two-year accelerated graduate entry adult nursing course at Thames Valley University in 1996.  She went on to complete a post registration diploma in cancer nursing at The Centre for Cancer and Palliative Care Studies, University of Manchester in 2002. She is currently working towards an MSc in Advanced Practice,having completed MSc modules in Clinical Examination and Case Management (Skin Cancer), Practical Dermoscopy and Non-Medical Prescribing.

Delia works across dermatology, surgery and oncology.

Delia was elected Vice Chair in November 2018

Clair McGarr – Treasurer

Clair was until 2019 a specialist skin cancer nurse at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham. She is now a Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Education, Health and Wellbeing at the Institute of Health, University of Wolverhampton.

Claire was Chair of BASCSN for two terms. She was elected as an ordinary member of the board in November 2018.

Sheena Dryden

Sheena Dryden has been nursing for 40 years, specialising in different aspects in the field of cancer for 34 of them. She has been a nurse specialist for skin cancers for 12 years working with patients and their carers within a multidisciplinary setting from diagnosis, through treatment to, thankfully increasingly, recovery. Her hobbies involve travelling and volunteering within the community, nationally and internationally.

Sheena was re-elected Treasurer in November 2018

Jackie Hodgetts

Jackie Hodgetts is a Nurse Clinician at The Christie Hospital in Manchester, where she has worked since 1988 when she was employed as a Research Nurse working with lung cancer and melanoma patients. In 2009 she completed a Master’s degree in Clinical Practice, and since then has worked with melanoma patients, assessing and supporting them through treatment, as well as managing their toxicities.

Jackie has been involved in multiple trials of melanoma treatments, including the early studies of BRAF inhibitors and other targeted therapies. She was also involved in early studies with CTLA-4 and anti-PD-1/PD-L1 antibodies and has since treated many patients with these therapies. Consequently she has developed expertise in melanoma treatments and the management of their side effects. Jackie has published two articles on melanoma in Cancer Nursing Practice and The Nursing Times, and has jointly published a paper on understanding and managing immune-related adverse events.

David Phillips

Dave Phillips has been Macmillan Skin Cancer CNS with the South West Wales Specialist Skin Cancer MDT for last 10 years.  He is based in the Singleton Hospital Swansea where he predominantly works in oncology with Prof John Wagstaff.

Dave has been very involved with the development and roll out of treatments for malignant melanoma across South West Wales over the last few years.

Karen McKinnon

Karen has over 40 years of experience in oncology nursing. Having trained at Kings College and The Royal Marsden hospitals in London, she later moved to Edinburgh and Southampton before settling in Canterbury. She has spent time in both chemotherapy and radiotherapy settings, and has specialised in GI cancers and haematology before becoming a Macmillan clinical nurse specialist in skin cancer. She is now an independent practitioner working as an occupational screener and on the Macmillan information bus. Karen was one of first CNSs in the country to run nurse led diagnosis clinics, and melanoma group education sessions. She has been a peer reviewer since its inception, and held posts in local UKONS. She has been an active member of BASCSN and joined the board in 2015.

Michelle Reid

Michelle has recently become the skin cancer clinical nurse specialist for the Northern trust within Northern Ireland. Prior to this she had 17 years’ experience within cancer services in both oncology and radiotherapy, mainly with patients at advanced stage melanoma and involved with the first trials in melanoma. Her current post provides support and information to those who have had a confirmed diagnosis of skin cancer and review. She has established her own nurse led clinics, telephone results clinic and a holistic needs assessment clinic. She is currently undertaking the non-medical prescribing course and has completed the health assessment module.

Janet O’Hagen

Janet has been a Skin Cancer Nurse Specialist at Surrey & Sussex Healthcare Trust since May 2014.

She works between three hospitals in the Trust mainly in clinics where she discusses the diagnosis and treatment plans with patients, requests further tests and follows up patients as per IOG guidelines. She sees approximately 250 patients a month.

Janet also provides open access to patients who have any concerns about their health usually seeing them within two or three days. She is keen to support the BASCSN committee in helping nurses to develop a better and safer service for our patients.

Outside of work, Janet’s interests include exercise classes and the theatre, and she also enjoys the odd glass of wine or two.

Carol Cuthbert

Carol Cuthbert is a Macmillan Melanoma Nurse Specialist at St George’s Hospital, London. Her background is medical oncology, chemotherapy administration, ward sister and a member of the Acute Oncology Service.

Clinically she is involved with patients and their carers throughout the cancer journey from a new diagnosis of melanoma to terminal care and is actively involved in the new oncological skin cancer treatments.

Over the past 6 years she has been extremely active in the development of the Electro-chemotherapy (ECt) service at St George’s.

Carol is a member of the Specialist Advisors to NICE’s Interventional Procedures Programme which has produced guidelines for the use of ECt in particular skin groups.

At present Carol is working towards an MsC in Healthcare Practice (Cancer Care).

Lianne has been a Macmillan skin cancer clinical nurse specialist for 5 years working on the Wirral and is delighted to have been appointed a member of the BASCSN board. Before this she was a chemotherapy nurse practitioner in The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre. She has specialised in cancer for 11 years now and prior to this was in acute care.

Her current post is quiet varied, she is the only skin cancer CNS in her trust which makes her the key worker for all skin cancers. She sees new patients referred via the 2WW, surgically removes skin lesions and runs nurse led follow up clinics for both melanoma and non melanoma skin cancers. She also has nurse led clinics where she performs skin checks for immunocompromised patients and people with multiple moles.

She is very proactive in regards to patient education and runs regular sun awareness roadshows, talks in local schools and teaches on the level 6 post graduate oncology course. Lianne has just completed the non medical prescribing and Mary Seacole programme.

When she is not working/studying and being a mother. She enjoys going to the gym and running.

Elected November 2018

Louise Binns – Macmillan Skin Cancer Nurse Specialist

Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust

Louise has been nursing since 1992 and her main roles since 2000 have been very much in oncology. She started out in palliative care, moving on to chemotherapy and PICC line placement, breast and colorectal CNS and then research, specialising in lung and prostate cancer, before becoming a Skin Cancer CNS in 2013 in Harrogate.

Louise currently works as a single post holder in a DGH (Harrogate); so secondary care, referring to tertiary care in Leeds. Within her role she offers a PDT and diagnostic biopsy service, diagnosis support and a skin cancer education programme.

Elected to board November 2018

Tim Dean

Tim Dean is an ex-officio member of BASCSN.

Tim looks after the membership and organises events including the Annual Conference.