Simple test could 'transform care' for thousands of women with suspected womb cancer

A straightforward test could help rule out womb cancer in women who experience bleeding following the menopause.

The method has the potential to "transform care" for thousands of women every year, researchers claim, and could spare patients from "invasive, uncomfortable" procedures that can prove costly for the health service.

Approximately 10,200 women are diagnosed with womb cancer – also known as uterine or endometrial cancer – across the UK annually.

Post-menopausal bleeding is a common symptom and would trigger an urgent cancer referral.

Current tests include ultrasounds, biopsies of the womb lining, and a hysteroscopy, whereby a camera is inserted into the womb.

However, researchers at the University of Manchester and Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust argue that "most of these investigations are unnecessary", given that only 5% to 10% of women presenting with this symptom actually have cancer.

The new test analyses cells gathered from urine and vaginal fluid samples.

A study published in the Lancet Obstetrics, Gynaecology and Women's Health involved 1,864 women attending hospital with postmenopausal bleeding.

Prior to routine testing, patients provided samples, which were then examined by specialists.

Some 115 women were found to have cancer, including 99 who had womb cancer.

When the urine and vaginal cell sample results were combined, the test accurately identified 80% of cancers. It also had a negative predictive value of 98.8% for womb cancer, meaning women who received a negative result were highly unlikely to be suffering from the disease.

The test also detected nearly all aggressive cancers, identifying 95.8% of high-grade tumours and 96.4% of cancers that had already spread beyond the uterus.

Researchers stated that the test could be used to assess women suspected of having endometrial cancer, and could "support rapid diagnosis, provide quick reassurance, and reduce the burden of invasive testing for women with postmenopausal bleeding".

Professor Emma Davidson, of the University of Manchester and honorary consultant in gynaecological oncology at MFT, said: "Bleeding after the menopause is understandably alarming for women because it can be a sign of cancer, but the vast majority of those investigated will not have the disease.