Hi Laura. 

I keep seeing replies from you on many posts. It's very reassuring.

I am 26, I have two children 9 and 5. My periods have always been weird due to being on the implant. But I think in December it lasted a few days longer than normal. Fast forward to this month, I had my period as normal. It lasted around 10 days which is normal, then 4 days later I started bleeding again and bled for a week. Classed as spotting as it was never enough to wear a pad or anything. I phone my GP, explained everything and she didn't seem too worried. She booked me in for my first smear (haven't had one due to Covid) and also said she'd take some swabs 'to be on the safe side' (don't know what they're for?) 

Since speaking to her I've noticed I have lower back pain in a morning which eases off throughout the day. I have groin pain pretty much constantly, it's just a dull ache and I also noticed I had stomach cramps the day after having sex. Te cramps were pretty painful. They eased off in the evening. 

I don't have any smelly discharge, no bleeding during or after sex, no bloating, I'm not off my food and I don't think I've noticed any changes in bowel movement either.. 

Just looking for some reassurance really. My smear is booked for 10th March but I'm ringing to ask if they can bring it forward. I'm due on on the 10th march and all this worry is really affecting me. 

Hi, sorry I didn't see your post until now! I hope you are doing well and you've found out what is going on. At your young age I wouldn't think your issues would be cancer related but it is always good to follow up and keep tabs on things.  Please message me if you need to. 

Laura xx

Hi Sillygoose

I’m sorry to see how worried you are, but it would be difficult for anyone other than a doctor to reassure you by an examination and assessing your symptoms. 

To my knowledge there is no genetic link in having cervical cancer, although I believe that there is research showing there may be a genetic link in a person’s ability to clear the HPV virus, which is responsible for the vast majority of cervical cancers. 

I would recommend that you stop googling as this won’t provide the information you need to diagnose you and may give you information which isn’t relevant. There are other reasons which could be causing the bleeding which are not nearly as serious as cancer, although, yes, it is a possibility in your 20s. A possibility, but by no means a certainty. 

A smear is not a or a diagnostic test for cervical cancer-it’s a screening for abnormal cells-so it’s good you are seeing a doctor to investigate further. Any unexplained bleeding should have an explanation and I hope the doctor will be able to reassure you that it is nothing as serious as cancer. Good luck with your appointmen5 and let us know how you get on. xx

Thank you so much for getting back to me, I've got my two boys to keep me busy and off Google. I'll let you know what happens on Thursday, on the 17th I believe the dr is doing an examination so will see what they say.

It’s good you will be examined by the doctor. And good you can keep busy and off google-it’s honestly the way of madness when you don’t actually know what’s wrong and it always gives worst case scenario for everything! Fingers crossed you will get a simple explanation for your issues. xx

Hi Everyone,

Hope you are all well.

I have read all 25 pages of this chat and it's so lovely to see everyone supporting each other

I have a colposcopy booked on Thursday morning and hoping for a good result. My symptoms were bleeding after sex on a few occasions and bloody tinged discharge often.

I had 2 GP's take a look and both said they can see something on my cervix but it doesn't look nasty, it looks like a ectropion and superficial? Not sure what that meant but referred me anyway.

My last smear was last summer which came back clear.

I am worried but am hoping for the best as that's all I can do at this moment. Xx

Hi Holly

It’s good that you are getting properly checked out with the colposcopy but an ectropion isn’t serious, and isn’t cancer. It just means that cells from the inside of the cervix are growing on the outside, and this can cause bleeding sometimes.

The doctors are just being thorough in their tests, so try not to be too concerned at this point and I hope that your appointment goes well and you can be reassured. xx

Hi Holly,

I'm glad you found this thread and hope it will provide you with some peace of mind. There are so many other issues we can have that aren't cancer and it is good that you are getting yourself checked out. That is the most important thing, I think, taking charge of your health and following up. Keep us posted on how you are doing.

Laura xx

Hi All,

sorry to jump on the post but I have read a lot of your thread and feel like it would be good for me to reach out and speak to people.

I am a 27 year old mum of 2 boys (aged 3 years & my youngest is 5 months), both children were born by c section, first was emergency and second was elective. By 6 weeks post partum I felt back to normal and was no longer experiencing any pain. Fast for to around 2 months ago I started to feel pain in my lower stomach/pelvic area, the pain was so bad if I even leaned on against the kitchen side, whilst standing washing the pots for example, it would really hurt. The pain now is pretty much 24/7, like dull achy period cramping pain, I had the implant fitted around the same time I started experiencing the pain and have bled constantly ever since which I know the implant can cause, I have had implants before and had no bleeding whatsoever.
 

Other symptoms I've had is painful sex, this has been ongoing a lot longer than the rest of the symptoms (I'd say probably since my first born), the pain is more like I'm really dry? but I'd initially put that down to the fact I'd dilated to 5cm before requiring an emergency section and the fact we'd attempted sex quite soon after birth of my first born so I kind of thought maybe because I was expecting sex to be painful it was causing it to be, if that makes sense so I thought it might have been more psychological.
 

i do suffer with severe health anxiety which deffo doesn't help matters, this is something I have CBT and counselling for. 
 

I had a smear not long after my first son was born and I'm due another in August this year. My first smear was normal which is good. Before I had the implant put in this time, I'd noticed an increase in watery discharge, however no strong odour and more recently I have had itching and pain similar to thrush, however I have used thrush treatment and had no improvement. I also don't have any STDs.

In addition I have had lower back pain since my youngest was born, I thought it may have been caused by the spinal block I had or maybe sciatata, I suffered really badly with SPD during my last pregnancy. Today I am bleeding so heavy, put a tampon in and it was sooo painful, the same pain as I feel during sex, took it out more or less straight away and had the most intense cramping in my stomach afterwards. When I went to see my gp she didn't examine me because of my heavy bleeding but put me on an urgent referral for a pelvic ultrasound and transvaginal scan which I have tomorrow, I think I can feel raised lymph nodes in my groin but my anxiety also plays tricks on me! So scared this is going to be cancer of some sort! My Nan is currently suffering with ovarian cancer and I can't help but think i could end up with some sort of cancer in that area.

Hi Elma,

Sorry your having these issues but you are doing the right thing by getting checked out. That is actually the best way to combat health anxiety (which I totally understand and suffer from myself). Of course no one here can provide any medical advice, but I picked out some things from your post that are positive in my opinion. Your last smear was normal, good. Your getting a few tests, good. Taking charge of your health, good! Again, I have no medical background, but with the children, the implant, the itchiness.. sounds like you've got a lot going on that could be the culprit. Continue on ruling things out and you will feel much better. Keep us posted on what you find out.

Lauraxx

Hi Laura,

thanks for getting back to me, im trying so hard to focus on the 'positives' like that but then I also can't help feeling that all the pain im in across my stomach, the constant heavy bleeding, the pain during sex and inserting a tampon and back ache together is just not going to be good. The only thing I'm trying to cling on to is hoping that it may be endometriosis, as although I think it's quite rare, I believe c sections can increase the risk of that but I have no idea. Dreading today, do you think they would tell me any findings there and then or will I have to wait for them to tell my doctor and then wait for my doctor to get back to me? The waiting (like I'm sure it does everyone) is just the worst thing for my anxiety and it puts me in such a low place, I have been prescribed anti depressants for my anxiety but am yet to take any as it says on it that it may impair my driving reactions etc and a huge part of my job involves driving so I'm just having CBT and counselling which at the moment doesn't seem to be improving anything yet. It's just so exhausting feeling like this all the time. I will update you all later my scan is at 12 so not too long to wait now. Xx

Hi Elma

I'm not sure if you will be told anything at your scans or will have to wait. These are not the types of scans used in a diagnosis of cervical cancer specifically so it would seem like your doctor wants you to have scans which will give a good look at the area in general to try to identify what the problem is. For the scans used in a cervical cancer diagnosis-ct, mri, petscan,you need to wait for results, but the scans you are having might be different in terms of what they are able to say at the time you have them. 

There are so many gynaecological issues which can affect us which are not cancer. Has a doctor mentioned cervical cancer, or is this something you have focused on from your symptoms? Your anxiety must be very debilitating, and it can manifest itself in lots of physical symptoms. xx

Hi Elma

I'm not sure if you will be told anything at your scans or will have to wait. These are not the types of scans used in a diagnosis of cervical cancer specifically so it would seem like your doctor wants you to have scans which will give a good look at the area in general to try to identify what the problem is. For the scans used in a cervical cancer diagnosis-ct, mri, petscan,you need to wait for results, but the scans you are having might be different in terms of what they are able to say at the time you have them. 

There are so many gynaecological issues which can affect us which are not cancer. Has a doctor mentioned cervical cancer, or is this something you have focused on from your symptoms? Your anxiety must be very debilitating, and it can manifest itself in lots of physical symptoms. xx

Hi Minska,

she didn't specifically say cervical cancer but was asking about my last smear and looking up when my next one is and asked me about history of cancers in my family, she said she was concerned but that the pain in my stomach could possibly be linked to scar tissue from my C-section but because of the other symptoms I have she wasn't sure so said she was booking me an urgent referral to look at my pelvic area, cervix and ovaries. 
 

Also this might be because I couldn't answer certain questions like whether I bleed after sex etc as I literally bleed 24/7 which is probably linked to my implant being put back in, sometimes I bleed so heavy with clots but then the next day can be a lot lighter. There's no real pattern or anything to it and the bleeding also makes it more difficult for me to tell what my discharge is now like as before I had the implant it was very watery and I was having to wear liners in my pants but I assumed that was just because I'd not long had a baby I didn't really think into it much at the time.

my anxiety is definitely deliberating, it's caused me so many false symptoms in the past but the pain im in at the moment is just ridiculous so I really doubt it is caused by my anxiety. Paracetamol and ibruprofen reduce the pain but it never fully goes xx

Hi Elma

You really must be exhausted by everything you’re going through right now-I really feel for you. 

The good thing is that your scans today might finally give you some answers, and the fact that it was an urgent referral doesn’t automatically mean a cancer diagnosis, it just means you are seen quicker than normal because your doctor cannot be sure what’s going on. I really hope that it’s something less sinister and you find out quickly so that you can get whatever treatment you need. xx

Hi thought I'd update, got to my appointment early and managed to get seen before my slot. Couldn't have the abdominal ultrasound as they said my bladder wasn't full enough which I seriously don't understand as I'd drank 1.5l of water and was dying for a wee! But they did the transvaginal scan, I asked at the end if there was any concerns she said everything looks okay on that and that I'd hear from my gp in a couple of days to discuss what they advise next so not really sure I just feel abit in limbo, obviously I know ultrasounds arnt normally used for cervical cancer so could it still be that? I just feel abit all over the place anxiety wise xx

Hi Elma

Gosh-I would have thought that would have been enough water for a full bladder! Good that nothing of concern has been seen so far though. 

I think the most appropriate thing would be for your gp to refer you to a gynaecologist for a pelvic examination, not a smear though as you are not scheduled for one currently and that’s not the most appropriate test. In the steps to diagnose or rule out cervical cancer, you need your cervix to be examined and go from there. But keep in mind it it may well be a much less sinister issue than cancer so try not to be fixated on that as an outcome at this point. xx

Hello everyone,

Long post alert! I'm new to this forum and I'm going through some scary stuff at the moment. I have just read this thread from start to finish - so many inspirational women on here and I already feel a bit better. 
My daughter, nine, was diagnosed with leukaemia in Jan 2020 just before the pandemic. She has been amazing and finishes her treatment next week. 
Last January I had a smear test which came back as HPV positive, but no abnormal cells found. Advised me to go back 12 months later. 
In July, I had some bleeding after sex. Never happened before, my cycle always regular and no bleeding between. Due to what my daughter has been going through, I was really concerned and went to my GP who was amazing. She examined me and said she could see a small cervical ectropian which bled quite easily. She sent me for an internal scan (which was fine) and put me on the two week pathway as I was so stressed and worried. I had a colposcopy, where I was told that they could see a small ectropian but not to worry and go back to my GP if I had further bleeding. 
Around that time, my periods went bezerk. I've never had heavy periods but suddenly I was getting huge amounts of blood loss and clots. For a couple of months my periods lasted for two weeks or so and were totally out of sync. I put this down to the covid jab as it was so out of character for me. I also started experiencing lots of watery discharge. I also went back to my GP and she referred me to a gynaecologist, who rang me just before Xmas to find out what was going on. I was then booked in for an endometrial biopsy in January. 
Whilst waiting for this I had my repeat annual smear done. Two weeks later I had my endometrial biopsy and the gynaecologist said my heavy bleeding etc was most likely due to the stress of my daughter's illness causing my hormones to go haywire. She said she wasn't concerned but would wait for the results. 
Last Saturday I had an awful letter in the post saying they had found severe dyskaryosis (?invasive) in my smear results. They had also booked me for a colposcopy to investigate. 
Yesterday I had my colposcopy and the consultant said straight away she would be doing LLETZ to remove as many abnormal cells as possible. After the procedure the Dr said she is brutally honest with all of her patients, and that she didn't like what she had seen. She fast tracked the biopsy to the lab and said she was going to put me on the MDT list for the following Wednesday just in case. I asked her if it was cancer and she said we just need to wait for the results. She said she may be wrong, and apologised in advance for putting me through this, but she would rather be safe than sorry. She agreed that it was very odd that my previous colposcopy last year was clear as was my smear test, but she would 'unpick' those results later. 
When they let me out of the room they asked me to wait for 30 minutes to make sure I was ok. My husband was allowed to come up and sit with me. He was and is beside himself, as we have both struggled mentally with our daughter's treatment. 
All of the nurses were very kin and made me a cup of tea - but I can't get it out of my head how they all looked at me. Like they all knew I had cancer? The specialist oncology nurse gave me her card and told me to ring her whenever I liked before the results and MDT meeting next Wednesday. 

I don't know what to think. I am struggling to understand how I've got to this point in under 12 months. I thought cervical cancer was slow at progressing. I am terrified that after everything my daughter has been through, that she's going to lose her Mum. 
 

Last month I started to have uncomfortable back pain at night with period type pains. They are manageable with one or two paracetamol. I don't bleed between periods but they are very heavy. Until my LLETZ yesterday, I've had consistent watery discharge. 
 

Sorry for the long post. It feels better to write it all out actually. Hoping someone can ease my anxiety as I have another 7 days until my results. 

Hi Helen

I am so sorry to read what you’re going through and especially about your little girl- I can’t imagine how difficult things must be for you and I so hope that her treatment will prove to be very successful. You must have gone through some incerdibly tough times, and been unimaginably worried for her. I’m sure we’ll all be praying for the best of news when she finishes her treatment.

And now you have these further worries to deal with. So, let’s start going through this. The severe dyskariosis is abnormal cells, but the question mark means there is a suspicion that these are invasive ie cancer. But they don’t know this yet. The nurses don’t know, the doctor doesn’t know and only the results from pathology of the cells removed at your lletz will give the definitive answer. 

We all look for clues in body language, and how nurses etc “look” towards us but they simply don’t know yet. 

Your doctor clearly suspects something, and is getting your results fast tracked and having you on the MDT list for discussion. This is all a good thing, although it may not feel like it, because you will have answers quickly and be able to get on with whatever treatment is required. 

Unfortunately it is possible to have a clear smear and colposcopy and still have cancer, as no test is perfect, but it seems like the doctor has just seen cells, rather than an actual tumour, so this would suggest that if this is cancer, it will have been caught early. Again that might not seem positive, but in the world of cancer, it really is. Cervical cancer is very treatable, so please try not to think your daughter will lose her mum. No matter what they find, it can be treated.

You will find out very quickly if this is cancer, and will be thrown into a spin of scans and appointments if it is. Early stage cervical cancer would usually mean having a hysterectomy, often with no further treatment required, so that would be the best possible result if you do have cancer. A hysterectomy is not possible for higher stages of this cancer, and you would have a different treatment plan, but it’s too early to think about that yet.

It’s impossible not to worry, I understand that completely, but what I would advise is not to google, and to take one day at a time without automatically thinking the worst. My diagnosis was 3.5 years ago, was locally advanced (so that means there was some spread) and I had a visible tumour. However, I’m fine now. 

Please use the forum here for help and support. We all can understand the fear, and we know what this is like. Obviously, I hope you don’t have cancer, but if you do we can help support you through.  xx

Hello Minska,

Thank you so much for your quick reply. A lot of what you have said makes sense.

I had a call from a consultant at the hospital an hour ago, to advise me they were going to book me in for an MRI scan, based on what they saw yesterday. He said the biopsy results would hopefully be back by Friday and the MRI would be scheduled for next week.

I asked him if he had seen my previous set of colposcopy results, and he said he had put the two photos side by side and there was a significant change in the appearance of my cervix. He then went on to say that an audit is done for every patient and he when that is complete he will be open and honest with me about why the results are different. Which to me means that they didn't spot the cancer last year.

I am still hoping that it will be early stages, but am alarmed at how quickly they are trying to organise the MRI etc. I know this is a good thing in the long run, but I can't help but think it's because they things it's at a very serious stage :(

Hi Helen

Things are moving very quickly for you which is good, but it’s sad to think something might not have been picked up earlier if that is the case. However, this does not necessarily mean that things are at a very serious stage, just that they already seem pretty certain this will be cancer, and they want to get your scans done quickly so that they can proceed with a treatment plan. My biopsy result was back within a week, and ct and mri scans done within a week of that after a single appointment at the gynaecologist so things can move quickly. xx

Hi Helen, I just wanted to share my story a little bit with you, as I have just recently been diagnosed with cc and have staging mri tomorrow. I have had bleeding during intercourse on and off for around 5 years now and was told it was ecropion and nothing to worry about as my smears were all fine, but over the last year it has gotten so bad that we can't have sex anymore. I had a smear and swabs done last year followed by colposcopy which found minor cell changes. So was given a routine referral to gynaecology last August to investigate the bleeding and I was told I likely had endometriosis.

Fast forward to January, and still no appointment, I experienced random severe heavy bleeding twice in one evening, so my GP referred me for an urgent ultrasound which showed a mass on my cervix. I was given an urgent referral back to colposcopy, where he took a few biopsies and done lletz treatment. A week later I get a call from his secretary asking me to come in that afternoon, and when I arrived he confirmed I had cancer. He had taken biopsies and done treatment  further up my cervical whereas the last Dr did not, which is why it was missed at my appointment last year.

Unfortunately colposcopy is not always 100% accurate and things do get missed, so it's good they have got you back in and getting it sorted it out. Hope all goes well for you. Xx

Hi Helen, I just wanted to share my story a little bit with you, as I have just recently been diagnosed with cc and have staging mri tomorrow. I have had bleeding during intercourse on and off for around 5 years now and was told it was ecropion and nothing to worry about as my smears were all fine, but over the last year it has gotten so bad that we can't have sex anymore. I had a smear and swabs done last year followed by colposcopy which found minor cell changes. So was given a routine referral to gynaecology last August to investigate the bleeding and I was told I likely had endometriosis.

Fast forward to January, and still no appointment, I experienced random severe heavy bleeding twice in one evening, so my GP referred me for an urgent ultrasound which showed a mass on my cervix. I was given an urgent referral back to colposcopy, where he took a few biopsies and done lletz treatment. A week later I get a call from his secretary asking me to come in that afternoon, and when I arrived he confirmed I had cancer. He had taken biopsies and done treatment  further up my cervical whereas the last Dr did not, which is why it was missed at my appointment last year.

Unfortunately colposcopy is not always 100% accurate and things do get missed, so it's good they have got you back in and getting it sorted it out. Hope all goes well for you. Xx