If you’ve had a persistent cough for 3 weeks or more, or you’ve been coughing up blood, you should contact your GP practice, especially if you are or have been a smoker. They’ll be able to check it over for you and see if there’s anything they can do to help.
Getting checked for skin cancer
Getting checked for skin cancer
It’s always best to get checked early. Your GP will listen carefully to your concerns and depending on your symptoms they may:
- Be able to reassure you.
- Examine the area closely.
- Monitor for change over time.
- Refer you to a specialist.
FACTS
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There are two types of skin cancer: malignant melanoma is less common but more serious; non-melanoma cancer is very common but less likely to be so serious.
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In 2017, 1,226 cases of malignant melanoma were diagnosed in Scotland.
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If sun bed use is started under the age of 35, the risk of melanoma is almost doubled (source British Medical Journal).
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Skin cancer is more common in fair skinned people because they have less of the protective pigment called melanin.
Cancer Symptom Checker
Symptom Checker
If it's something related to a specific area of your body, try using the symptom checker tool below.
Select one:
Select a body area:
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If you have new, persistent hoarseness (your voice doesn’t go back to normal), you should contact your GP practice. They’ll be able to check it over and see if there’s anything they can do to help.
-
If you’re having difficulty or pain when swallowing, which is new for you, for 3 weeks or more, you should contact your GP practice. It’s probably nothing serious, but they’ll be able to check it over for you and see if there’s anything they can do to help.
-
Mouth ulcers are very common and most of them heal fairly quickly. However, if you have a mouth ulcer that isn’t healing, or you notice red or white patches inside your mouth that aren’t going away, you should visit your dentist in the first instance. If you aren’t registered with a dentist, you can find more information here.
It’s probably nothing serious, but it’s definitely worth getting checked. Remember, you’re not wasting anyone’s time.
-
If you have an unexplained lump in the neck for 3 weeks or more, you should contact your GP practice. It’s probably nothing serious, but they’ll be able to check it over and try to identify what’s causing your symptoms. Remember, you’re not wasting anyone’s time.
-
Headaches are extremely common, but you should keep an eye out for new headaches especially if they have any of the following features: worse in the morning or wake you up at night, worse when you cough, strain, bend over or shout, make you sick or vomit, are getting steadily worse and are not helped by painkillers.
It’s worth contacting your GP practice, especially if accompanied with other new symptoms like problems with your memory or vision, speech difficulties, loss of power or sensation in your arms/legs or loss of balance.
-
It’s not unusual to feel out of breath every now and then, but if you’re experiencing new breathlessness, or a change in breathlessness for 3 weeks or more, you should contact your GP practice, especially if you are or have been a smoker.
For sudden difficulty breathing and severe chest pain, please call 999 for urgent medical advice.
-
If you’re experiencing pain in the chest, that may change when you breathe, and you’ve had these symptoms for 3 weeks or more, you should contact your GP practice, especially if you are or have been a smoker. It might be nothing, but they’ll be able to check it over for you.
For sudden difficulty breathing and severe chest pain, please call 999 for urgent medical advice.
-
If you find a lump in your breast, it doesn’t necessarily mean you have cancer, but it’s important to get checked.
-
If you find a lump in your armpit and it does not go away on its own within 6 weeks, it’s important to get it checked.
-
If you notice any change to your nipples (leaking, bleedy or crusty) or the skin on your breast, it’s important you contact your GP practice. They’ll be able to check it over, just to make sure it’s nothing serious.
-
If you have an infection in your breast that doesn’t settle (comes back after 1 course of antibiotics), get in touch with your GP practice again.
-
Heartburn and indigestion are very common, especially after eating a large or spicy meal. But if you’ve been experiencing new heartburn or indigestion that doesn’t go away, and you didn’t get before, you should contact your GP practice. It’s probably nothing serious, but it’s definitely worth getting checked. Remember, you’re not wasting anyone’s time.
-
If you have a noticeable lump or swelling in your belly, or you’ve got unexplained stomach pain that’s new or getting worse, you should contact your GP practice. It might not be anything serious, but it’s definitely worth getting checked over. Remember, you’re not wasting anyone’s time.
-
If you’ve noticed blood in your poo or you’ve been experiencing bleeding from the bottom, you should contact your GP practice. You should also contact them if you’ve noticed persistent changes in your bowel habits, especially if you’ve been experiencing looser poo, or pooing more regularly, for 4 weeks or more.
-
While blood in your pee can be caused by a number of conditions, it’s important to get checked.
-
If you’ve noticed that you need to pee more often, or more urgently than normal, and don’t have a urine infection, you should contact your GP practice. It might be nothing, but it’s definitely worth getting checked. Remember, you’re not wasting anyone’s time.
-
If you notice anything different or unusual in either of your testicles such as painless swelling, a lump in either testicle or a dull ache in the tummy or groin, especially if unusual and persistent, you should contact your GP practice. These symptoms don’t necessarily mean it’s something serious, but it’s definitely worth getting checked early. Remember, you’re not wasting anyone’s time.
-
If you notice anything unusual on your skin that doesn’t go away in 4 weeks, contact your GP practice. This could include:
- A spot or sore that does not heal.
- A spot or sore that continues to itch, hurt, scab, crust or bleed.
- A new or changing dark-coloured line in a nail or anything growing under a nail.
- A change in shape or size of an existing mole, or a mole that looks new or different from other moles.
-
Jaundice causes your skin and the whites of your eyes to turn a yellow-ish colour. If you notice these symptoms, you should contact your GP practice. They’ll be able to help you understand the cause of your symptoms. Remember, you’re not wasting anyone’s time.
-
If you’ve had a persistent cough for 3 weeks or more, or you’ve been coughing up blood, you should contact your GP practice, especially if you are or have been a smoker. They’ll be able to check it over for you and see if there’s anything they can do to help.
-
If you have new, persistent hoarseness (your voice doesn’t go back to normal), you should contact your GP practice. They’ll be able to check it over and see if there’s anything they can do to help.
-
If you’re having difficulty or pain when swallowing, which is new for you, for 3 weeks or more, you should contact your GP practice. It’s probably nothing serious, but they’ll be able to check it over for you and see if there’s anything they can do to help.
-
Mouth ulcers are very common and most of them heal fairly quickly. However, if you have a mouth ulcer that isn’t healing, or you notice red or white patches inside your mouth that aren’t going away, you should visit your dentist in the first instance. If you aren’t registered with a dentist, you can find more information here.
It’s probably nothing serious, but it’s definitely worth getting checked. Remember, you’re not wasting anyone’s time.
-
If you have an unexplained lump in the neck for 3 weeks or more, you should contact your GP practice. It’s probably nothing serious, but they’ll be able to check it over and try to identify what’s causing your symptoms. Remember, you’re not wasting anyone’s time.
-
Headaches are extremely common, but you should keep an eye out for new headaches especially if they have any of the following features: worse in the morning or wake you up at night, worse when you cough, strain, bend over or shout, make you sick or vomit, are getting steadily worse and are not helped by painkillers.
It’s worth contacting your GP practice, especially if accompanied with other new symptoms like problems with your memory or vision, speech difficulties, loss of power or sensation in your arms/legs or loss of balance.
-
It’s not unusual to feel out of breath every now and then, but if you’re experiencing new breathlessness, or a change in breathlessness for 3 weeks or more, you should contact your GP practice, especially if you are or have been a smoker.
For sudden difficulty breathing and severe chest pain, please call 999 for urgent medical advice.
-
If you’re experiencing pain in the chest, that may change when you breathe, and you’ve had these symptoms for 3 weeks or more, you should contact your GP practice, especially if you are or have been a smoker. It might be nothing, but they’ll be able to check it over for you.
For sudden difficulty breathing and severe chest pain, please call 999 for urgent medical advice.
-
If you find a lump in your breast, it doesn’t necessarily mean you have cancer, but it’s important to get checked.
-
If you find a lump in your armpit and it does not go away on its own within 6 weeks, it’s important to get it checked.
-
If you notice any change to your nipples (leaking, bleedy or crusty) or the skin on your breast, it’s important you contact your GP practice. They’ll be able to check it over, just to make sure it’s nothing serious.
-
If you have an infection in your breast that doesn’t settle (comes back after 1 course of antibiotics), get in touch with your GP practice again.
-
If any of below symptoms relate to you, especially if you’re aged 50 or over, get in touch with your GP practice so they can help you find the cause of your symptoms:
Experiencing one or more of the following unexplained symptoms, occurring most days over the last 4 weeks:
- Swollen tummy or persistent bloating.
- Pelvic or abdominal pain.
- Increased urgency and/or frequency to pee.
And/or new symptoms within the last 12 months that suggest irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) such as bloating, change in bowel habit and more frequent poo, especially if you are aged 50 or over.
-
Heartburn and indigestion are very common, especially after eating a large or spicy meal. But if you’ve been experiencing new heartburn or indigestion that doesn’t go away, and you didn’t get before, you should contact your GP practice. It’s probably nothing serious, but it’s definitely worth getting checked. Remember, you’re not wasting anyone’s time.
-
If you have a noticeable lump or swelling in your belly, or you’ve got unexplained stomach pain that’s new or getting worse, you should contact your GP practice. It might not be anything serious, but it’s definitely worth getting checked over. Remember, you’re not wasting anyone’s time.
-
If you’ve noticed blood in your poo or you’ve been experiencing bleeding from the bottom, you should contact your GP practice. You should also contact them if you’ve noticed persistent changes in your bowel habits, especially if you’ve been experiencing looser poo, or pooing more regularly, for 4 weeks or more.
-
If you’ve been experiencing unusual bleeding during or after sexual intercourse, persistently between periods or after the menopause you should contact your GP practice. It might not be anything serious, but it’s definitely worth getting checked. Remember, you’re not wasting anyone’s time.
Please note, it’s common to have irregular vaginal bleeding or spotting in the first few months after you start taking hormone replacement therapy (HRT). This usually settles down within 6 months and is not usually a sign of anything serious. You can find out more information here.
-
If any of below symptoms relate to you, especially if you’re aged 50 or over, get in touch with your GP practice so they can help you find the cause of your symptoms:
Experiencing one or more of the following unexplained symptoms, occurring most days over the last 4 weeks:
- Swollen tummy or persistent bloating.
- Pelvic or abdominal pain.
- Increased urgency and/or frequency to pee.
And/or new symptoms within the last 12 months that suggest irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) such as bloating, change in bowel habit and more frequent poo, especially if you are aged 50 or over.
-
While blood in your pee can be caused by a number of conditions, it’s important to get checked.
-
If you’ve noticed that you need to pee more often, or more urgently than normal, and don’t have a urine infection, you should contact your GP practice. It might be nothing, but it’s definitely worth getting checked. Remember, you’re not wasting anyone’s time.
-
If you notice anything unusual on your skin that doesn’t go away in 4 weeks, contact your GP practice. This could include:
- A spot or sore that does not heal.
- A spot or sore that continues to itch, hurt, scab, crust or bleed.
- A new or changing dark-coloured line in a nail or anything growing under a nail.
- A change in shape or size of an existing mole, or a mole that looks new or different from other moles.
-
Jaundice causes your skin and the whites of your eyes to turn a yellow-ish colour. If you notice these symptoms, you should contact your GP practice. They’ll be able to help you understand the cause of your symptoms. Remember, you’re not wasting anyone’s time.
-
If you’ve had a persistent cough for 3 weeks or more, or you’ve been coughing up blood, you should contact your GP practice, especially if you are or have been a smoker. They’ll be able to check it over for you and see if there’s anything they can do to help.
-
If you have new, persistent hoarseness (your voice doesn’t go back to normal), you should contact your GP practice. They’ll be able to check it over and see if there’s anything they can do to help.
-
If you’re having difficulty or pain when swallowing, which is new for you, for 3 weeks or more, you should contact your GP practice. It’s probably nothing serious, but they’ll be able to check it over for you and see if there’s anything they can do to help.
-
Mouth ulcers are very common and most of them heal fairly quickly. However, if you have a mouth ulcer that isn’t healing, or you notice red or white patches inside your mouth that aren’t going away, you should visit your dentist in the first instance. If you aren’t registered with a dentist, you can find more information here.
It’s probably nothing serious, but it’s definitely worth getting checked. Remember, you’re not wasting anyone’s time.
-
If you have an unexplained lump in the neck for 3 weeks or more, you should contact your GP practice. It’s probably nothing serious, but they’ll be able to check it over and try to identify what’s causing your symptoms. Remember, you’re not wasting anyone’s time.
-
Headaches are extremely common, but you should keep an eye out for new headaches especially if they have any of the following features: worse in the morning or wake you up at night, worse when you cough, strain, bend over or shout, make you sick or vomit, are getting steadily worse and are not helped by painkillers.
It’s worth contacting your GP practice, especially if accompanied with other new symptoms like problems with your memory or vision, speech difficulties, loss of power or sensation in your arms/legs or loss of balance.
-
It’s not unusual to feel out of breath every now and then, but if you’re experiencing new breathlessness, or a change in breathlessness for 3 weeks or more, you should contact your GP practice, especially if you are or have been a smoker.
For sudden difficulty breathing and severe chest pain, please call 999 for urgent medical advice.
-
If you’re experiencing pain in the chest, that may change when you breathe, and you’ve had these symptoms for 3 weeks or more, you should contact your GP practice, especially if you are or have been a smoker. It might be nothing, but they’ll be able to check it over for you.
For sudden difficulty breathing and severe chest pain, please call 999 for urgent medical advice.
-
If you find a lump in your breast, it doesn’t necessarily mean you have cancer, but it’s important to get checked.
-
If you find a lump in your armpit and it does not go away on its own within 6 weeks, it’s important to get it checked.
-
If you notice any change to your nipples (leaking, bleedy or crusty) or the skin on your breast, it’s important you contact your GP practice. They’ll be able to check it over, just to make sure it’s nothing serious.
-
If you have an infection in your breast that doesn’t settle (comes back after 1 course of antibiotics), get in touch with your GP practice again.
-
Heartburn and indigestion are very common, especially after eating a large or spicy meal. But if you’ve been experiencing new heartburn or indigestion that doesn’t go away, and you didn’t get before, you should contact your GP practice. It’s probably nothing serious, but it’s definitely worth getting checked. Remember, you’re not wasting anyone’s time.
-
If you have a noticeable lump or swelling in your belly, or you’ve got unexplained stomach pain that’s new or getting worse, you should contact your GP practice. It might not be anything serious, but it’s definitely worth getting checked over. Remember, you’re not wasting anyone’s time.
-
If any of below symptoms relate to you, especially if you’re aged 50 or over, get in touch with your GP practice so they can help you find the cause of your symptoms:
Experiencing one or more of the following unexplained symptoms, occurring most days over the last 4 weeks:
- Swollen tummy or persistent bloating.
- Pelvic or abdominal pain.
- Increased urgency and/or frequency to pee.
And/or new symptoms within the last 12 months that suggest irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) such as bloating, change in bowel habit and more frequent poo, especially if you are aged 50 or over.
-
If you’ve noticed blood in your poo or you’ve been experiencing bleeding from the bottom, you should contact your GP practice. You should also contact them if you’ve noticed persistent changes in your bowel habits, especially if you’ve been experiencing looser poo, or pooing more regularly, for 4 weeks or more.
-
While blood in your pee can be caused by a number of conditions, it’s important to get checked.
-
If you’ve noticed that you need to pee more often, or more urgently than normal, and don’t have a urine infection, you should contact your GP practice. It might be nothing, but it’s definitely worth getting checked. Remember, you’re not wasting anyone’s time.
-
If you notice anything different or unusual in either of your testicles such as painless swelling, a lump in either testicle or a dull ache in the tummy or groin, especially if unusual and persistent, you should contact your GP practice. These symptoms don’t necessarily mean it’s something serious, but it’s definitely worth getting checked early. Remember, you’re not wasting anyone’s time.
-
If you’ve been experiencing unusual bleeding during or after sexual intercourse, persistently between periods or after the menopause you should contact your GP practice. It might not be anything serious, but it’s definitely worth getting checked. Remember, you’re not wasting anyone’s time.
Please note, it’s common to have irregular vaginal bleeding or spotting in the first few months after you start taking hormone replacement therapy (HRT). This usually settles down within 6 months and is not usually a sign of anything serious. You can find out more information here.
-
If any of below symptoms relate to you, especially if you’re aged 50 or over, get in touch with your GP practice so they can help you find the cause of your symptoms:
Experiencing one or more of the following unexplained symptoms, occurring most days over the last 4 weeks:
- Swollen tummy or persistent bloating.
- Pelvic or abdominal pain.
- Increased urgency and/or frequency to pee.
And/or new symptoms within the last 12 months that suggest irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) such as bloating, change in bowel habit and more frequent poo, especially if you are aged 50 or over.
-
If you notice anything unusual on your skin that doesn’t go away in 4 weeks, contact your GP practice. This could include:
- A spot or sore that does not heal.
- A spot or sore that continues to itch, hurt, scab, crust or bleed.
- A new or changing dark-coloured line in a nail or anything growing under a nail.
- A change in shape or size of an existing mole, or a mole that looks new or different from other moles.
-
Jaundice causes your skin and the whites of your eyes to turn a yellow-ish colour. If you notice these symptoms, you should contact your GP practice. They’ll be able to help you understand the cause of your symptoms. Remember, you’re not wasting anyone’s time.