Endometrial cancer diagnosis

Sorry to hear about your diagnosis and the time it's taken. The hospital will have a PALS (patient liaison service) and I would suggest giving them a call and asking them to help find out what's happening next. 

I hope you don't have to wait much longer for answers.

H 

Thank you. But i live in northern ireland, they don't have that service here.

Hi Lou

I am sorry to hear that you had to wait so long to get your gynaecology appointment. It sounds like it was done on a routine referral rather than at the time meeting the criteria for an urgent cancer referral. 

I remember it taking a couple of weeks from hearing I had cancer to anything much happening. What I didn't know at the time was that I was discussed at the Multi disciplinary team meeting (which happened once a month) and they were coming up with the treatment plan. 

I would expect you to have either a CT scan or MRI scan (sometimes both) within a couple of weeks and they will do that to provisionally stage the cancer. To chase it up I would suggest contacting your GP to see what happens now. I contacted my own GP after diagnosis when I had not heard anything and they contacted the hospital directly, spoke to the consultant and got me an appointment the next day- a Friday. I had my pre op appointment that afternoon and my surgery on the Monday. Once they have all the information needed- it can move quite quickly. 

My GP was always sent any results, letters etc electronically and would often get them around a week before me- so it is well worth contacting them. 

I can understand your concern about it taking a long time. Endometrial cancer can be a slow growing cancer, especially when it is a lower grade. (type) Endometrial cancer caught at an early stage is often a very treatable cancer. 

For most ladies where medically possible a hysterectomy is offered. There can sometimes be a hormone treatment used and this may be the mirena coil or sometimes hormone tablets. 

Sometimes cancer can be contained within a polyp. They would also have done the biopsy of your womb lining to check for cancer there. If the cancer is completely contained within the polyp then this would be considered to be an early stage cancer. If the cancer was also within the lining of your womb but contained then this would also be considered early stage. 

I know it is a worrying time so please do give the Support Line a call and talk to one of the nurses if it would help.

I would then contact your GP surgery first thing Monday morning and ask for an update as to what happens now and to ask them to chase up an MRI/CT

Good Luck

Jane

Hi, Perhaps you could find out the telephone number of your Consultant's Secretary? They often have ways of communicating more quickly with the Consultant for answers....good luck.