The 10 ‘red flag’ symptoms that mean you could have cancer

It's important to listen to your body. There are red flags that it can display to let you know when something's wrong.

These are 10 common red flags that are tied to different forms of cancer:

1. Persistent cough or hoarseness - could indicate lung cancer

2. A change in the appearance of a mole - could mean you're suffering skin cancer

3. A persistent change in bowel habits - could be a sign of bowel cancer

4. A sore that does not heal - depends on where, a mouth ulcer could mean mouth cancer

5. Persistent difficulty swallowing - can mean a person is suffering oesophageal cancer

6. Unexplained weight loss - can indicate several types of cancer

7. Persistent change in bladder habits - could be a sign of bladder cancer and prostate cancer in men

8. An unexplained lump - can be a warning sign of many forms of the disease

9. Persistent unexplained pain - depending on where, can denote many types of cancer

10. Unexplained bleeding - depends where but can mean bowel, cervical or vulval cancer

If you or a member of your family notice one of these red flag symptoms be sure to book an appointment with your physician. If your symptoms become persistent you might begin to think that they're normal.