The word “cancer” carries a heavy emotional burden, often silencing the conversations that matter most. Yet avoiding dialogue around these diseases can lead to delayed diagnoses and missed chances for timely intervention. In the realm of women’s reproductive health, gynaecological cancers remain particularly under-discussed.
Gynaecological cancers include all cancer types that begin in the female reproductive system and can affect everyone who was assigned female at birth1. Every year in the UK, around 22,050 women are diagnosed with gynaecological cancers2. However, despite this, a 2022 “Get Lippy survey” run as part of an “Eve appeal” campaign, revealed that only 2% of the population could identify all types of gynaecological cancer, while 1 in 3 people could not name a single type3. The numbers become even more starling when it comes to seeking medical help. The same survey run in 2024 revealed that fewer than half of women would seek medical advice if they experienced abnormal bleeding during or after sex, between periods or after menopause- a key warning sign of many gynaecological cancers4. This lack of awareness, combined with feelings of embarrassment and the normalisation of pain often leads to one outcome: a late diagnosis.
The Spectrum of Female Reproductive Cancers
The most well-known types of gynaecological cancers are the ovarian and cervical cancers. However, the spectrum is broader, encompassing less familiar types such as uterine (womb), vaginal, vulval, and fallopian tube cancers. Uterine cancer, also known as endometrial or womb cancer, is the most common gynaecological cancer in the UK, with around 9,800 cases annually. It is common among post-menopausal women and often presents with abnormal vaginal bleeding5 as a key symptom. Ovarian cancer remains one of the most serious female cancer types mainly due to its vague symptoms, such as bloating, abdominal pain, or early satiety, which often culminate in a significantly delayed diagnosis6. Cervical cancer is predominantly caused by an HPV infection*, accounting for 99.8% of cases. HPV infections are usually harmless but there are some high-risk strains that could lead to cancer. Overall, cervical cancer is largely preventable through the HPV vaccination and the cervical screening programme (pap smear) which can detect pre-cancerous/abnormal cells before they progress into cancer. The rarer cancers – vaginal, vulval, and fallopian tube – are less well known, yet they carry their own risks. Vulval cancer, for example, may present as persistent itching or skin changes, while vaginal cancer is often only detected at later stages in older women mainly due to mistaking the symptoms for benign conditions. Fallopian tube cancer is so rare it is usually found incidentally during surgery7.
A persistent challenge for this group of cancers is that their symptoms – bloating, abdominal pain, changes in bleeding patterns or persistent itching – are mostly vague and non-specific, being frequently present in many common conditions. Consequently, both patients and clinicians may initially attribute them to other causes8. This overlap can lead to misdiagnosis or delayed recognition, allowing the disease to progress unchecked. Thus, awareness and early detection are critical as the timing of diagnosis can directly affect survival. The later the diagnosis, the more chances there are that the cancer will have entered its metastatic stage. For example, in ovarian cancer, the five-year survival** is around 95% when diagnosed at stage I, but it drops to 15% when diagnosed at stage IV6.
Early diagnosis also reduces the financial burden on the healthcare system. Treating a late-stage disease is far more expensive than prevention. In England, ovarian cancer treatment costs rise from ~£5,300/patient at stage I to ~£15,000/patient at stage IV9. Furthermore, hurdles such as the lack of effective diagnostic tools, limited access to screening, and gaps in clinical implementation also continue to hinder progress against gynaecological cancers. These issues will be analysed in future articles.
A Call for Early Detection and Equitable care for gynaecological cancers
To address these challenges, governments and regulators must invest in smarter resource allocation, funding outreach in underserved communities, fast-tracking promising diagnostics through NHS pilot programmes, and fostering collaboration between the NHS, academia, and industry to accelerate access to effective treatments
Alongside systemic changes, clinicians must listen to their patients, pay attention to any persistent symptoms, and avoid dismissing them as stress-related or “normal”. Equally patients should feel empowered to recognise warning signs and act on them, rather than normalising their discomfort and/or pain. Listening to one’s body is vital, even when concerns are dismissed; persistence in seeking medical advice can make a key difference in health outcomes.
A coordinated effort among patients, clinicians, and policymakers, focusing on awareness, access, and early diagnosis, is necessary. Awareness and discussion alone are not enough anymore; information must translate into action. In the case of cancer, prevention is one of the most powerful tools we have. It may be a message repeated in awareness campaigns over the years, but it remains true: Early diagnosis saves lives and builds patients’ trust in the healthcare system. Every woman who listens to her body, every clinician who listens empathetically and investigates her symptoms thoroughly, and every policy that prioritises prevention moves us closer to timely detection and better outcomes in gynaecological cancer care.
Disclaimers:
*HPV infection does not mean you will get cervical cancer. HPV virus has several strains, some of which can cause abnormalities in cervical cells. If detected early, these cells can be further evaluated and if necessary, removed before becoming cancerous.
**5-year survival does not mean you’ll only live 5 years. 5-year survival is the number of people who have not died from their cancer within 5 years after diagnosis. 5 years is just a common timepoint that scientists check for survival.
References
- Women’s cancers (gynaecological cancer) | Cancer Research UK. (n.d.). Retrieved October 7, 2025, from https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/womens-cancer
- Gynaecological cancers – The Eve Appeal. (n.d.). Retrieved October 7, 2025, from https://eveappeal.org.uk/information-and-advice/gynaecological-cancers/
- 1 in 3 people can’t name a single type of gynaecological cancer- let’s Get Lippy to change that – The Eve Appeal. (n.d.). Retrieved October 7, 2025, from https://eveappeal.org.uk/news/1-in-3-people-cant-name-a-single-type-of-gynaecological-cancer-lets-get-lippy-to-change-that/
- Less than half of women would act on ‘red-flag’ symptoms – The Eve Appeal. (n.d.). Retrieved October 7, 2025, from https://eveappeal.org.uk/news/less-than-half-of-women-would-act-on-red-flag-symptoms/
- Uterine cancer statistics | Cancer Research UK. (n.d.). Retrieved October 7, 2025, from https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/health-professional/cancer-statistics/statistics-by-cancer-type/uterine-cancer
- Ovarian cancer survival | Cancer Research UK. (n.d.). Retrieved October 7, 2025, from https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/ovarian-cancer/survival
- Fallopian Tube Cancer Symptoms, Treatment & Survival Rate. (n.d.). Retrieved October 7, 2025, from https://www.cancercenter.com/cancer-types/ovarian-cancer/types/fallopian-tube-cancer
- Evans, J., Ziebland, S., & McPherson, A. (2007). Minimizing delays in ovarian cancer diagnosis: an expansion of Andersen’s model of “total patient delay.” Family Practice, 24(1), 48–55. https://doi.org/10.1093/FAMPRA/CML063
- Saving lives and averting costs? The case for earlier diagnosis just got stronger – Cancer Research UK – Cancer News. (n.d.). Retrieved October 7, 2025, from https://news.cancerresearchuk.org/2014/09/22/saving-lives-and-averting-costs-the-case-for-earlier-diagnosis-just-got-stronger/