A cancer patient has said she feels women's healthcare has been "overlooked" following her diagnosis after years of knowing that something was not right. In July last year Beverley 'Bev' Hewitt from Tonypandy in Rhondda Cynon Taf was diagnosed with endometrial cancer, which is also known as womb (uterus) cancer.
The disease develops when malignant cells form in the tissues of the endometrium, which is the lining of the womb. Beverley is currently undergoing treatment for stage three C of the cancer. As it stands there is currently no standard or routine screening testing for endometrial cancer unlike cervical screen or 'smear tests' that are used to detect potentially precancerous and cancerous processes in the cervix which could lead to cervical cancer. But endometrial cancer can be detected through a scan of the womb, a biopsy, or blood tests.
According to the NHS one of the main things that can increase your chance of getting womb cancer is having a high level of a hormone called oestrogen. But you might also be more likely to get womb cancer if you have diabetes, a family history of bowel, ovarian, or womb cancer, or inherited a rare gene that causes Lynch syndrome.
