Diagnosis, investigations and tests

Most commonly, your GP will refer you into our service with symptoms such as blood in the urine. This may be obvious called Visible Haematuria, or invisible and only found on testing, called Non-visible Haematuria.

Your medical team may request some of the following tests and investigations:

 

Sample of urine – you will be asked to provide a urine sample for analysis.

 

Cystoscopy – A doctor or specialist nurse will examine the inside of your bladder by passing a thin camera through your urethra. The procedure normally takes five to 10 minutes and before starting a local anaesthetics gel will be applied to your urethra. The specialist may also take a small tissue sample from the inside of the wall of your bladder.

Read more about a cystoscopy in this patient information leaflet. 

 

Ultrasound scan – Uses sound waves to create pictures of the organs in the pelvis and tummy area. Find out more about ultrasound scans.

 

CT scan - CT scans take pictures of your body. If ovarian cancer is also suspected you will have an abdomen and pelvis CT. This normally takes around 10 minutes. Discover more about  CT scans.

 

MRI scan - MRI uses magnestism and radio waves to create a cross sectional picture of the body. The scan itself normally takes around 45 minutes to one hour. Learn more about MRI scans.

 

PET scan - Positron emission tomography (PET) scans produce a detailed three-dimensional images inside the body. They can also show how well certain parts of your body are working, rather than simply showing what they look like. Learn more about PET scans.