Here in NHS Fife we operate a Rapid Access Service for patients who require investigations for potential gynaecological cancers. Patients are referred via their GP or by our Consultant led Gynaecology teams based both in the Victoria Hospital in Kirkcaldy and the Queen Margaret Hospital in Dunfermline.

 

Our service covers patients who have been diagnosed with the following types of cancer:

Ovarian Cancer

The ovaries hold the eggs which are released each month during child bearing age. They also produce the sex hormones progesterone and oestrogen which control periods. The fallopian tubes connect the ovaries to the womb (also called the uterus).
Around 7,500 women are diagnosed with ovarian cancer in the UK each year. This makes ovarian cancer the 6th most common cancer in women. The risk is greatest in those aged between 75 and 79.
You should arrange to see your doctor if you have any of these signs and symptoms:

  • feeling full quickly
  • loss of appetite
  • pain in your tummy (abdomen) or lower part of your abdomen that doesn't go away
  • bloating or an increase in the size of your abdomen
  • needing to pass urine more often

You may also have these other symptoms:

  • tiredness that is unexplained
  • weight loss that is unexplained
  • changes in your bowel habit or symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome, especially if this starts after the age of 50

Endometrial Cancer

Most womb cancers start in the lining of the womb. They are also called uterine or endometrial cancer. Womb cancer is the 4th most common cancer in women in the UK.
The most common symptom of womb cancer is abnormal bleeding in post menopausal women. A third of endometrial cancers are related to a high BMI. The prevalence of oestrogen in fat cells enables the lining of the womb to thicken and therefore increases the turnover of cells which then have a greater chance of becoming cancerous.

You should arrange to see your doctor if you have any of these signs and symptoms:
Abnormal vaginal bleeding can be:

  • bleeding after the menopause
  • bleeding that is unusually heavy or happens between periods
  • a vaginal discharge that might be from pink and watery to dark and foul smelling

Less common symptoms of womb cancer include blood in the urine (haematuria) with either a:

  •  low red blood cell level (anaemia)
  • high platelet count (thrombocytosis)
  • high blood sugar level

Cervical

There are two main types of cervical cancer. The most common is squamous cell carcinoma. This develops from a type of cell that covers the outside of the cervix, at the top of the vagina. And adenocarcinoma, this develops from a different type of cell found in the cervical canal.
Around 3,200 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer in the UK each year.
You should arrange to see a doctor if you have any of the following signs and symptoms:

  • unusual vaginal bleeding
  • pain or discomfort during sex
  • vaginal discharge
  • pain in the area between the hip bones (pelvis)

Vulval

Cancer of the vulva is also called vulval cancer or vulvar cancer. It can start in any part of the female external sex organs. It most often affects the inner edges of the outer lips (labia majora) or the outer lips (labia minora).
Vulval cancer is a rare cancer. Around 1,400 people are diagnosed in the UK each year.
It's more common in older women. On average each year more than 40 out of 100 (more than 40%) of new cases are in women aged 75 and over.
You should arrange to see a doctor if you have any of the following signs and symptoms:

  • a lasting itch
  • pain or soreness
  •  thickened, raised, red, white or dark patches on the skin
  • an open sore or growth visible on the skin
  • a mole that changes shape or colour
  • a lump

Vaginal

The vagina is made up of tissue layers, including:

  • epithelial tissue – a thin layer made up of squamous cells that line the vaginal wall
  • connective tissue – a layer underneath the epithelium, made of fibrous tissue with muscle, lymph vessels and nerves

The most common type of vaginal cancer starts in the squamous cells.Vaginal cancer is very rare. Around 250 women are diagnosed in the UK each year.

You should arrange to see a doctor if you have any of the following signs and symptoms:

  • bleeding in between periods or after the menopause
  • bleeding after sex
  • vaginal discharge that smells or is blood stained
  • pain during sexual intercourse
  • a lump or growth in the vagina that you or your doctor can feel
  • a vaginal itch that won’t go away