UCLH would like to remind practices that a revised imaging alerts and notifications process will be introduced from Monday 7 September 2026. 

The policy strengthens the communication and management of significant imaging findings and aligns UCLH with national guidance and Royal College of Radiologists recommendations. Its aim is to reduce the risk of missed or delayed follow-up of clinically significant radiological findings and improve patient safety. 

New alert categories 

The new alert categories provide an additional safety net for significant findings but do not replace the responsibility of requesting clinicians to review, action and communicate all imaging results to patients. 

Imaging reports may include three categories of alerts: 

• critical findings requiring urgent action
• new or suspected cancer diagnoses requiring acknowledgement and action within five working days
• significant addenda, where a revised interpretation may alter clinical management, requiring acknowledgement and action within five working days.  

Critical findings will continue to be communicated directly by telephone in addition to electronic notification. 

What GP practices need to know

For GP-requested imaging, the UCLH imaging teams will continue to notify external referrers of new cancer alerts and significant addenda through established notification processes.  

Practices may notice the introduction of the new alert categories within imaging reports and the retirement of the previous Actionable Finding alert category.  

The policy reinforces the responsibility of requesting clinicians, including GPs, to review, action, and communicate imaging results to patients, while supporting this through enhanced safety-net mechanisms designed to reduce the risk of missed or delayed follow-up of important radiological findings. 

Further information is available from the UCLH imaging team.