Referral to a specialist for symptoms of vaginal cancer

Seeing your GP

It can be hard for GPs to decide who may have cancer and who might have a more minor condition. For some symptoms, your doctor may ask you to wait to see if the symptoms get better or respond to treatment, such as antibiotics.

Your GP might arrange for you to have some tests first. This will help them decide if you need to see a specialist.

Find out about tests to diagnose vaginal cancer

UK referral guidelines

There are guidelines for GPs to help them decide who needs a referral. These vary between the different UK nations. Your GP will use these guidelines as well as their own experience and judgement.

In England and Wales

Your doctor should arrange for you to see a specialist if you have a lump in the vagina or at the entrance to your vagina.

In Scotland

You should have an urgent referral if your doctor finds an abnormal area in your vagina when they examine you.

In Northern Ireland

In Northern Ireland the guidance groups together the symptoms of:

• cervical cancer

• ovarian cancer

• vaginal cancer

• vulval cancer 

• womb cancer

You should have an urgent referral to see a specialist if:

• your doctor thinks you may have cervical cancer following an examination, even if your previous cervical screening test was normal

• you have vaginal bleeding after your menopause and you are not taking hormone replacement therapy (HRT)

• you have been taking HRT and have vaginal bleeding, and the bleeding continues and cannot be explained when you have stopped your HRT for 6 weeks

• you have vaginal bleeding after your menopause and are taking a medicine called tamoxifen

• you have an unexplained lump on your vulva

• you have sores (ulcers) and bleeding from your vulva

Your doctor might refer you to see a specialist urgently if you have bleeding between your periods and a physical examination is normal.

You should have a CA125 blood test if your GP has examined you and wants to test for ovarian cancer.

You should have an urgent referral for an ultrasound scan if you have:

• an unexplained lump in your tummy (abdomen) or the lower part of your tummy (pelvis)

• a raised CA125 level on a blood test

You should have an urgent referral to see a specialist if your ultrasound is abnormal.

Other symptoms

Your GP will consider any other symptoms that you are having, so do mention these. They might also take into account whether you have any risk factors that affect your chances of developing vaginal cancer.

Read more about the risks and causes of vaginal cancer

If you're still worried

Sometimes you might feel that your GP is not concerned enough about your symptoms. If you think they should be more concerned, print this page and the symptoms page. Ask your GP to explain why they don’t think you need a referral.

Contact your GP again if your symptoms don't get better or you notice any new or unusual symptoms.

What should you do if you don’t get an appointment?

If your GP has referred you to a specialist, ask them when you should get your appointment. Contact them again if you don’t get one. Or some hospitals have a referral service you could try contacting if you know which hospital you are going to. Explain that you are waiting for an urgent suspected cancer referral.

Go to more information about an urgent referral, what to expect and questions to ask

Waiting times

Your hospital is working towards waiting time targets. For example, a target to find out whether you have cancer or not. And there are targets to start treatment if you are diagnosed with cancer. These are slightly different depending on where you live in the UK.

Find out about cancer waiting times