Gynaecological Cancer

A reminder about female anatomy

Gynaecological cancers are those which arise in the female reproductive organs. So it helps to be able to picture what and where those are.

The womb (uterus) is a pouch with walls made of muscle. It is where babies grow when you are pregnant. The inside lining of the womb is called the endometrium. This lining is shed every month causing the bleeding you experience as a period when you are not pregnant.

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The lower opening, or neck of the womb, is called the cervix. This is the opening through which the blood travels from the womb to the outside during a period. It stretches wide open during childbirth.

The cervix sits at the top of a muscular tube called the vagina. This is a passage through which the blood passes during a period, and a baby during childbirth. Also when a baby is first conceived, the sperm from a man's penis gets to the cervix during sex, when the man's penis is in the woman's vagina.

The ovaries are two oval-shaped organs connected to the upper part of the womb on either side by the Fallopian tubes. Ovaries produce eggs and release them (where they are passed through the Fallopian tubes to the womb) in a monthly process called ovulation. The ovaries also produce the female hormones, oestrogen and progesterone.

The vulva is the part of the female reproductive system which is on the outside. It is the part of the genital area which surrounds the opening of the vagina.

The vulva includes:

• The labia majora. These are, in effect, large folds of skin.
• The labia minora. These are more delicate folds of skin just inside the labia majora.
• The clitoris - a small organ involved with sexual arousal.
• Tiny glands, the most prominent being the Bartholin's glands.
• The entrance to the urethra - the tube through which urine is passed from the bladder.
• The entrance to the vagina.

What is cancer?

Cancer is a condition where cells of a particular body organ multiply out of control. These abnormal cells can then spread around the body, causing damage and harm. Cancers in different organs are different illnesses, with different symptoms and different treatments. See the separate leaflet called Cancer.

What types of gynaecological cancers are there?

Cancer can arise in any of the female reproductive organs. Click on the links below to read about each individual type of cancer.

• Cancer of the uterus (endometrial cancer).
• Cancer of the ovary.
• Cancer of the cervix.
• Cancer of the vulva. A pre-cancerous skin condition called vulval intraepithelial neoplasia (VIN) can, in some cases, turn into cancer of the vulva if not treated.
• Cancer of the vagina. This is very rare. It tends to occur in older women.
• Cancer of the Fallopian tubes. This is rare. It tends to have similar symptoms to ovarian cancer and is diagnosed and treated in much the same way.

Is there screening for gynaecological cancers?

Currently in the UK there is a national screening programme for cervical cancer, but none of the other gynaecological cancers. This is because cervical cancer, in many cases, can be picked up in the very early stages, before it is even cancer. Typical cell changes are picked up in a smear test. Read about cervical screening (the cervical smear test) for more information. This pre-cancer stage can be treated so that cancer doesn't develop. This is done during a process called colposcopy. Read about colposcopy and cervical treatments.