We are delighted to announce that North Central London Cancer Alliance and University College London Hospital have been shortlisted for two 2026 Health Service Journal (HSJ) Awards, recognising outstanding contributions to healthcare and securing places at the prestigious awards ceremony later this year:
- Macmillan Cancer CNS Development Lead Pilot – shortlisted for Workforce Initiative of the Year
- ROCA: A New NHS Pathway for Ovarian Cancer Surveillance in BRCA Carriers – shortlisted for Clinical Pathway Redesign Award
1300+ entries have been received for this year’s awards, with 231 projects and individuals reaching the final shortlist. The high volume and exceptional quality of applications showcase the impressive levels of innovation and care continually being developed within the UK’s healthcare networks.
Following the thorough judging process, both projects were shortlisted ahead of the official awards ceremony to be held later this year (19th November), standing out as real success stories worthy of a prized place on the panel’s shortlist.
Macmillan Cancer CNS Development Lead Pilot
Cancer clinical nurse specialists play a pivotal role in patient care, offering clinical expertise, knowledge, and compassionate support through personalised cancer care. The CNS Development Lead pilot aims to address challenges to the CNS workforce, such as lower retention rates and difficulty navigating career progression routes, through structured professional support to new CNSs by five innovative senior nursing leadership posts. The postholders (pictured) offer mentoring, coaching, and education based on the ACCEND capability framework.
Angelie Samuel, Senior Project Manager for the Macmillan Cancer CNS Development Lead (CDL) Pilot, said: “Maintaining and developing a cancer CNS workforce is so important for delivery of high-quality cancer services. Through mentorship and coaching, the CDLs have been able to support and develop CNSs in their careers, building the cancer nursing leadership of the future.”
ROCA: A New NHS Pathway for Ovarian Cancer Surveillance in BRCA Carriers
ROCA is a surveillance service for women at high risk of ovarian cancer due to inherited BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene alterations. While surgical removal of their fallopian tubes and ovaries remains the best option for this group of patients, many are, understandably, not ready to undergo cancer prevention surgery if they want to complete their families or defer surgery for other reasons.
NICE guidance recommends that surveillance should be offered to women who choose to defer surgery. The Risk of Ovarian Cancer Algorithm (ROCA) test uses a proprietary algorithm to calculate a woman’s individual risk of ovarian cancer based on multiple factors. Used as part of a four-monthly surveillance programme, it enhances the likelihood of cancers being diagnosed at an advanced stage. UCLH is the first trust in the country to offer this surveillance on the NHS outside of a trial setting.
Prof Adam Rosenthal, Lead for Familial Gynaecological Cancer, UCLH, (pictured) said: “We’re delighted that our work has been shortlisted for an HSJ Award. This recognition reflects what can be achieved when clinical and research leadership at UCLH and UCL is combined with the system leadership of North Central London Cancer Alliance. We are also grateful to GENinCode for its partnership and its role in enabling delivery of the ROCA test within the NHS pathway.”
More info at: UCLH launches new ovarian cancer surveillance service for women at high risk | North Central London Cancer Alliance
HSJ editor Alastair McLellan, adds; “It always gives me great pleasure to congratulate our finalists at this stage of the judging process, and this year is no exception as we acknowledge NCL Cancer Alliance and University College Hospital Foundation Trust for being shortlisted in these categories. However, it’s always important to remember that the HSJ Awards are not just a celebration of success stories but also a platform to shape the future of the NHS.
“We can’t wait to welcome our finalists to the awards ceremony in November and to recognise and applaud such impressive achievements across the sector. Huge thanks also go to our headline partner, Vodafone Business, who share our mission of driving the standard of healthcare excellence and creating better patient experiences.”
The selected winners will be announced during the awards ceremony at Evolution London on 19th November 2026.
The event not only reflects the HSJ Awards’ enduring ethos of “sharing best practice, improving patient outcomes and innovating drivers of better service” but will also serve as a timely and well-deserved thank you to the sector.
The awards judging panel was once again made up of a diverse range of highly influential and respected figures within the healthcare community, as well as a range of esteemed board level executives from NHS Trusts across the UK.
The full list of nominees for the 2026 HSJ awards can be found at https://awards.hsj.co.uk/shortlist-2026 alongside details of the Awards partners at https://awards.hsj.co.uk/partners.
*Pictured above: Top photo – the CDL post holders. Below photo – Prof Adam Rosenthal