A full-time GP and familiar face from our television screens is urging people to never ignore bleeding from five parts of the body. Regular ITV guest star Dr Amir Khan took to Instagram on Wednesday to share the health advice, which could help save lives.
To begin with, he explained that blood in your stool – if bright red – may indicate an anal fissure, “when you have a tear around your anus”, and may also mean you have haemorrhoids. Dark, black, or tarry stools, Dr Amir added “can signal bleeding in your stomach or even small bowel”, and blood in stools can also be a sign of inflammatory bowel disease, “but really importantly, it can be a sign of bowel cancer, especially if accompanied by things like abdominal pain, weight loss, or a change in bowel habits”.
He suggested always getting it checked. Second on the GP’s list is blood in the urine, as he explained: “This could be an infection, it could be a kidney stone, or it could be a chronic kidney disease issue – but it can also be a sign of bladder or kidney cancer, so get it checked”.
Blood in your vomit, Dr Amir continued, can be caused by a bleeding ulcer or a tear in your oesophagus if it is bright red. Dark “coffee ground-like” vomit suggests a bleed in your stomach, he added. “Sometimes coughed up blood can appear like vomit and that can be a sign of lung cancer or TB. Vomiting blood can also be a late sign of stomach or oesophageal cancer and is always worth getting checked out.”
Number four, the GP said, is vaginal bleeding “outside of your normal periods”. He explained that it can mean a lot of different things, as he said: “Heavy, irregular bleeding can be a sign of fibroids, endometriosis, adenomyosis, or hormonal imbalances.
“Any bleeding from the vagina after the menopause should always be checked out. I can’t stress that enough. It doesn’t matter if it was small, if it stopped, if it hasn’t happened for weeks, if it happened just once and it was tiny, get it checked. It can be womb cancer.
“Bleeding between your periods can have a number of causes too, always worth looking at. Bleeding after sex can be a cervical polyp, can be an infection, but it could also be cervical cancer and is always worth investigating.”
Finally, Dr Amir said, bleeding from the ears should never be ignored. Listing potential causes, he continued: “A ruptured eardrum, it could be an ear infection or an injury, but it could also be a sign of head trauma or a skull fracture”.
If you have unexplained ear bleeding, the Lorraine and This Morning star added, you should seek medical advice – “especially if it’s linked to hearing loss, pain, or dizziness. Always see a GP if you’re concerned”.