Bury St Edmunds woman, 22, fears she could lose foot as she waits for urgent dermatology referral to West Suffolk Hospital

A young woman with a rare skin condition is ‘terrified’ she could lose her foot as she grows increasingly desperate for her urgent NHS appointment.

Katie Gill, 22, who lives in Bury St Edmunds, was referred by her GP in August for an urgent appointment with a dermatologist – yet she may not be seen until the New Year.

Katie, who works as a receptionist at a hotel in Bury, was some years ago diagnosed with necrobiosis lipoidica diabeticorum (NLD), a rare condition which can be linked to diabetes and causes itchy and painful skin.

Her left foot is lacerated and infected and, as Katie has type 1 diabetes, she is fearful for the future of her foot.

An urgent referral was made to dermatology at West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (WSFT) in August after other treatment – including several courses of antibiotics – did not appear to be helping.

However, after chasing up the appointment this week, Katie learned she may have to wait until January or February to be seen. She had been told by her GP to expect to hear within two or three weeks.

A WSFT spokesman said dermatology services were stretched across England due to a combination of an increased number of referrals and a shortage in the supply of available dermatologists.

“You hear of people with the condition losing their foot,” said former Thurston Community College pupil Katie. “I struggle with circulation anyway being type 1 diabetic. I get tingling in my foot and things like that, and the weather is getting colder as well.

“It’s terrifying to be honest – and at such a young age as well. You try not to think the worst, but it’s really difficult not to.

“To be honest with you, I just feel like I’m at a bit of a dead end really.”

She described her ‘shock’ at the waiting times for an urgent referral, adding: “I would like to think urgent is a month maximum.”

Her mum Sarah Gibbs, of Elmswell, near Stowmarket, said the family were now desperate for Katie’s appointment.

She said: “With her being type 1 diabetic that delays the healing anyway so it takes a lot longer. I have just got the worry that if nothing is done, that she could end up losing her foot. With type 1 diabetes you have to be so careful.

“I just don’t think anyone should have to wait this amount of time and if she’s in this condition waiting, what are other people’s situations? It’s quite scary.”

Katie, who also has the skin condition granuloma annulare, said her itchy and painful left foot impacted her at work as needed to stand for her role, meaning she had been forced to take some days off.

In desperation, she went to the hospital’s A&E a couple of months ago and she described the ‘horrified’ looks on the medics faces when they saw her foot.

Katie, who gets her foot dressed weekly at her GP surgery, said little seemed to be known about the rare skin condition – and she was hoping her story might help to raise awareness.

She said: “I have seen a lot of nurses and doctors and they will ask me if I have burned my foot and if it’s a birthmark, things like that.”

“I’m on a lot of Facebook forums and things like that. That’s the only place to get advice as people don’t really know what it is.”

The spokesman for WSFT said referrals for dermatology services across England had increased by 170 per cent in the last 10 years and 24 per cent of dermatologist posts were vacant across England, with the figure even higher in the east.

They said: “The increased number of referrals were seen across dermatology, however, this has been particularly notable in the number of urgent suspected cancer referrals.”

According to the WSFT website, the outpatient waiting time for a first, routine dermatology appointment is 44 weeks, as at October 2024.

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