St Mark’s is recognised as a national and international centre of clinical excellence for the diagnosis and treatment of intestinal and colorectal disorders. Explore our specialities here.
St Mark’s Endoscopy is world renowned; being the only unit in the UK to achieve international recognition as a centre of excellence for endoscopy research and training. It was the first unit in London to be accredited as a Bowel Cancer Screening centre in 2006 and is currently one of only six pilot sites in the UK for the Bowel Scope Screening programme, delivering the national bowel cancer screening programmes to the local population.
The histopathology (cellular pathology) department at St Mark’s has a distinguished history in both research and clinical colorectal pathology, which dates back to 1922. The department continues to be involved in specialist reporting of colorectal specimens including a number of complex cases referred by other hospitals, in addition to maintaining a high profile in pioneering new and novel histopathological techniques.
The IBD Unit is a renowned worldwide specialist service, which attracts both national and international referrals. The service has a multidisciplinary approach to patient care; with a team consisting of gastroenterologists, colorectal surgeons, IBD specialist nurses, psychologists/psychiatrists, pharmacists and dietitians. There is a weekly IBD multidisciplinary meeting where the team discuss complex cases to discuss patients on biological treatments. There is a monthly joint transition clinic for young people with IBD.
The Lennard-Jones Intestinal Rehabilitation Unit (IRU) at St Mark’s Hospital is a specialist centre dedicated to the assessment and management of patients with severe intestinal failure.
The nursing teams at St Mark’s Hospital follow the progress of patients from their first contact as outpatients through their investigations, surgical intervention and medical treatment, with emphasis on the patient’s comfort and emotional well-being. This partnership often extends beyond the hospital admission, with a focus on helping patients to adjust to the changes in their lives due to their altered health states.
Sir Alan Parks Physiology And Pelvic Floor Biofeedback Unit takes its name from the highly regarded surgeon whose name is synonymous with innovation in the field of colon and rectal surgery.
The radiology department at St Mark’s provides access to a comprehensive group of investigations, using X-ray, ultrasound, CT and MRI to look at the abdomen and bowel. Most patients attending the hospital will visit the radiology department and, for many, the results of those investigations are critical to the management of their disease.
The Psychological Medicine Unit at St Mark’s offers psychological assessment and management of patients being treated at the hospital, either as outpatients or during an inpatient stay. The unit has grown substantially and now receives up to 200 new referrals per year, both of patients currently being treated at St Mark’s and from other medical colleagues treating gastroenterology and coloproctology patients throughout the UK.
The Polyposis Registry at St Mark’s Hospital represents possibly the longest running research project in the world. It began in 1924 when a Pathologist, Dr Cuthbert Dukes, and Mr J.P. Lockhart-Mummery, a surgeon, discussed some patients they thought to be both interesting and rare. These patients not only had multiple polyps in the bowel but also a family history of bowel cancer.
The surgical work at St Mark’s Hospital specialises in advanced techniques for the treatment of both common and unusual problems of the small and large bowel and of the anus.
