A new NHS Essex survey of 1,500 people found that general awareness of ovarian cancer is extremely high, yet recognition of its symptoms and willingness to seek medical advice vary considerably.

The findings highlight an important gap between noticing that something may be wrong and actually making an appointment.

Some Symptoms Are Better Known Than Others

Almost 99% of respondents said they had heard of ovarian cancer. Awareness of certain symptoms was also strong: 87.9% recognised pelvic or abdominal pain, while 80.3% identified persistent bloating or a swollen abdomen as possible warning signs.

Other symptoms were much less widely recognised. Fewer than half of respondents associated ovarian cancer with needing to urinate more frequently, loss of appetite or feeling full unusually quickly after eating.

This matters because ovarian cancer can present with symptoms that are easy to dismiss or attribute to more common conditions.

Concern Does Not Always Lead to Action

The survey found that 69.7% of participants said persistent symptoms would worry them. However, only 42.4% said they would respond by making an appointment with their GP.

When asked what they would do first, 49.3% said they would contact a GP, while 24.7% would search online for information and 12.7% would wait to see whether their symptoms improved.

The results suggest that many people go through a period of monitoring, researching or seeking reassurance before contacting a healthcare professional.

Younger Adults May Be More Likely to Wait

One of the more striking findings was that younger and middle-aged respondents were not necessarily less informed about symptoms, but they were more likely to delay seeking medical advice.

People aged 25 to 49 were more inclined to search online first, adopt a wait-and-see approach or assume that their symptoms were not serious enough to justify an appointment.

By contrast, respondents aged 50 and over were generally more likely to say they would contact a GP first.

Getting an Appointment Is a Major Barrier

Practical difficulties were more significant than embarrassment or discomfort discussing symptoms.

More than half of respondents, 50.6%, identified difficulty getting a GP appointment as a barrier to seeking help. By comparison, only 6.3% selected embarrassment, while 4.2% said they might find it difficult to talk about their symptoms.

There were also noticeable regional differences across Essex. Respondents in Harlow, Colchester and Tendring were among the least likely to say they would contact a GP first and among the most likely to feel that their symptoms might not be serious enough to require medical advice.

Trusted Information Still Matters

When people actively looked for health information, GPs and NHS websites were the most popular sources. Around 32.2% chose their GP, while 31.8% selected an NHS website. Search engines were chosen by 21.2%.

Interestingly, social media played a different role. Very few people said they would use it as their first source of medical advice, but it was one of the main places where respondents had recently seen NHS information about ovarian cancer.

Persistent Symptoms Should Not Be Ignored

The findings show that improving awareness alone may not be enough. Many people already recognise ovarian cancer and some of its main symptoms, but uncertainty about whether those symptoms are serious can still delay action.