Understanding your GP

I’m worried about a change to my chest. Who should I speak to?

Firstly, well done for being a confident chest checker and noticing a change.

By checking your chest every month, you can get to know what is normal and usually there. If something looks or feels unusual for you, the first step is to book a GP appointment.

GP stands for general practitioner. This is a doctor who gives general medical treatment and advice. A GP is usually the first person you will be in contact with. GPs are part of the primary care system, which is the first point of contact in the healthcare system.

You may have an appointment with another primary care clinician (trained healthcare professional), such as:

An Advanced Nurse Practitioner: ANP. This is an experienced and highly educated Registered Nurse who manages the complete clinical care of their patients
A GP trainee: a person training to become a GP
A Physician Associate: a postgraduate doing medical training, who is managed by a doctor)
A specialist nurse

All of these healthcare professionals, along with GPs, can see you, hear your concerns and make a diagnosis. On this page, we talk about GPs mostly, but you will have the same advice and support from any other primary care clinician.

Chest changes in young people are quite common

A GP or other primary care clinician may offer advice and monitoring. Monitoring is when they talk to you about coming back again if the changes do not get better. They may also be able to offer you treatment.

The GP may also refer to other specialists such as a breast specialist if they feel you may need further tests. This does not mean you have breast cancer, but that some more information may be needed to understand the causes of your changes.

“In primary care, we are here for any worries or concerns you may have around your chest. Whether it’s to:

Assess new changes

Discuss fears and anxieties around chest health

Provide education on chest checking

Discuss worries around family history

Our doors are always open, and you are never wasting our time. Assessing changes early means we can ease your worries, or refer for quick and appropriate specialist care when needed.”

– Beth Lynch, GP and CoppaFeel! Medical Advisor

Booking a GP appointment FAQs

How do I book a GP appointment?

To book an appointment, you need to be registered with a GP surgery. This will be a GP surgery close to where you are living.

I’m living away from home, what should I do?

Make sure you are registered with a local surgery, so you can have easy access to health services nearby.

It is possible to stay registered with your home GP. It may be more practical to register locally, as you will need to come and see the GP for an examination, and this is much easier if they are nearby.

If you live at home but travel to work, you can also register with a GP surgery closer to your workplace. This is called an out-of-area registration which most GP surgeries offer.

I’m at university, where do I register?

It is important to register with a GP near your university as soon as possible. This means you can access healthcare quickly when needed. You can register with any local GP. The health centre linked to your university is likely to be the best place to register, and the GPs will have good knowledge of the health needs of students.

Registering with a GP

Registering with a GP is different in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Each page linked below will help you find GP surgeries local to you. It will guide you through the process.

If you are unable to register with a GP surgery, it could be because they are not able to take on new patients, or you live outside the area the surgery covers. You will need to register with another GP surgery in your area.

Below is a map to guide you on registering with a GP within the UK. Each section on the map will help you find GP surgeries in your area of the UK.

Remember: You are not wasting their time!

I’m registered with a GP, how do I make an appointment?

GP surgeries may have different ways of making appointments. When you register with a new GP surgery, you can ask them the best way to book appointments.

Your surgery’s website will explain how to make an appointment, or you can visit in person and ask for information on booking appointments. It is important to note whether your surgery offers on the day or routine appointments. If it is on the day, make sure you are free on the day when an appointment is offered.

Tell the GP surgery if you have any additional needs and any accessibility needs that they should be aware of, so they can offer you extra support.

Keisha’s story

“If something feels wrong, speak up. You deserve to be heard. Get checked by your GP.”

Read Keisha’s story

Language support

If English is not your first language and you are worried about understanding everything, you can ask for an interpreter.

An interpreter is someone who will be able to speak to you in your preferred language, and they can help you communicate with the GP. You will need to ask the GP surgery for an interpreter before your appointment, so they can book this for you.

If you use British Sign Language (BSL), you can ask for a BSL interpreter to support you during your appointment.

Jess’s rule

Jessica Brady passed away due to cancer in December 2020 at the age of 27. In the 5 months leading up to her death, Jess had 20 appointments with her GP practice, and her cancer had not been diagnosed. Jess was then admitted to hospital with stage 4 adenocarcinoma. This is a cancer that has started in the gland cells which make mucus in the lining of the gullet (oesophagus). She passed away shortly afterwards.

Since then, Jess’s family have campaigned for primary care staff to check a patient’s case again if the patient has had three appointments for the same condition or symptom.

The rule means GPs in England are encouraged to reflect, review and rethink if a patient visits three times with the same symptoms or concerns. They are encouraged to think carefully if symptoms do not go away, get worse or do not seem to be getting better.

Our health information carries the PIF TICK quality mark, so you can trust and rely on it.

This information was written in November 2025. We will look at it again in 2027.

Our sources for this page:

https://www.teenagecancertrust.org/information-about-cancer/advice-going-gp

https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/gps/what-to-ask-your-doctor/