A Leeds woman is warning Britons to “check their genitals” for signs of cancer after her disease was detected so late that it had spread to other organs and left her needing a life-changing operation to remove her entire genital area.
Pippa Sharp, 49, thought she was suffering from a bad case of recurring thrush for five months when she noticed a sore spot on her vulva, the external tissue of the female genitals.
Thrush is a common fungal infection that affects the genitals of both men and women and, although it is usually harmless, it can cause irritation and pain.
Mrs Sharp was prescribed antibiotics by her GP, but four days later she noticed the worrying spot was not going away.
After her course of antibiotics and with no success, Ms Sharp’s family referred her for a biopsy which revealed she had vulvar cancer.
Pippa Sharp, 49, thought she was suffering from a severe case of recurring thrush for five months and believed it had caused a sore, hard patch on her left lip.
At first, doctors believed the disease was confined to the mass of swollen tissue on the left outer lips.
However, further analysis showed it was even worse than initially thought and the disease had spread to the lymph nodes in his groin, meaning he was now stage three.
She underwent surgery to remove the mass, 50 rounds of radiation therapy and five rounds of chemotherapy.
She also had to soak her vulvar wound in a sitz bath (a small warm tub that sits on the toilet) filled with betadine, an antiseptic.
After each treatment, Ms Sharp was referred back to her specialist doctor, who told her he would check on her in three months.
But in January 2024, she began to feel the area swell again.
She added: ‘I spoke to the oncology nurses at my consultant appointment.
‘They were very helpful and suggested several things that could have been.
“But in my heart I knew the cancer had returned.”
A month later, a biopsy confirmed her fears.
This time, it had spread to two more areas: Ms. Sharp’s right labia and her “anal passage.”
Following frequent bouts of thrush, Pippa noticed a small, hard sore had developed on her left lip in August 2022.
At first, she ignored it for five months, thinking it was just a symptom of thrush. But eventually it was discovered that it was vulvar cancer.
On March 22, 2024, a section of her right lip was removed.
Mrs Sharp said: ‘I was told I would need 30 sessions of radiotherapy and five more sessions of chemotherapy.
‘We moved forward with the paperwork, I went to see her again for the planning ultrasound.
‘I told him I was still worried about my right lips and my anus.
‘She stopped the treatment and referred me back for biopsies.’
In July, Ms. Sharp’s biopsies came back and confirmed that the cancer had returned to her right lips, despite the procedure.
She had all the tissue surgically removed and is currently awaiting the remaining results before beginning further treatment.
Sharing her story, she said she wants more women to know more about this deadly disease, so they can detect it at an earlier stage than she did.
Ms Sharp, a former brand innovation and awards coordinator, said: “At first I was embarrassed about having vulvar cancer, but now I can’t stop talking about it.
“It’s a rare cancer, but that doesn’t mean people shouldn’t know about it.”
Ms Sharp’s ordeal began in August 2022 when she noticed a small, hard sore on her left lip, which she initially thought was thrush.
In January 2023, a GP suggested it could be an infected cyst or cancer.
Despite “immediately” believing it was cancer, Pippa agreed to take a course of antibiotics just in case.
She said: ‘Four days after I was prescribed them, there was no change.
‘I’m very cautious about health issues so I looked at the NHS website because I knew it was reliable.
“I had every single symptom listed under ‘vulvar cancer,’ from bloody discharge to persistent itching.”
Ms Sharp returned to her GP on 23 January 2023, who performed a biopsy on the painful area, which ultimately led to her diagnosis.
“It’s become a real goal for me to get the word out while I wait for news,” he said.
‘We talk a lot about how necessary it is to check our breasts.
‘But we should also check our vulvas periodically.
‘It’s a quick check when you go to the bathroom or when you’re lying in bed.
‘Feel around you for pain, lumps or bumps, and note any unusual discharge.
‘Always go to your GP if you are worried.’
In the UK, approximately 1,400 women are diagnosed with vulvar cancer each year, with women aged 90 and over most likely to be diagnosed with the disease.
Only 58 per cent of vulvar cancer patients are expected to survive 10 years after their diagnosis, a disease that kills nearly 470 Britons every year.
About two-thirds of vulvar cancers are thought to be preventable and an estimated 69 percent are caused by infection with the human papillomavirus (HPV).
HPVs are common viruses that are transmitted through sexual activity and usually cause no symptoms, but some are linked to an increased risk of cancer, such as vulvar and cervical forms of the disease.
This is partly why the HPV vaccine is now being offered to citizens in secondary schools in the UK.
