Updating your medical records

What can you have changed?

You should be able to ask your GP surgery to update your:

  • name
  • title
  • sex marker

Sex markers can be changed to male (M), female (F), or to a ‘not specified’ option if you do not wish to record your sex as male or female.

In some parts of the UK, updating the sex marker on your NHS records is not permitted for people who are under 18. For up-to-date information, see the NHS PCSE Patient Registrations page (England) or the NHS National Services Scotland page (Scotland).

What you’ll need beforehand

You will normally need to be registered with a GP surgery. There is information on how to do this on the NHS England website and the NHS Scotland website. In Wales, you can use the NHS 111 Wales website to find a local GP surgery and use the instructions on the GP surgery website.

You don’t need:

If you are changing the name you are using, it can be helpful to have made a deed poll or statutory declaration, as the GP surgery will normally ask for some evidence of a name change. You can learn how to make one of these on our Name Changes pages.

If you’re updating your sex marker, you’ll also want to think about whether you want to be given a new NHS number (England and Wales) or CHI number (NHS Scotland).

How to do it

You can change your name, title, or sex marker with the NHS at any time you like by telling your GP surgery.

Most GP surgeries will be able to update your details if you ask at reception. They may ask you to complete a form.

Some GP surgeries may be unsure of the procedure for how to update your records. You may find it helpful to give them these links which explain how they can update your details:

What to do if something goes wrong

If your GP surgery is asking for a deed poll, statutory declaration, or other evidence of a name change, you can show them this page on the PCSE website as evidence that this is not legally required or required by PCSE.

If your GP surgery is asking for a diagnosis or a Gender Recognition Certificate before allowing you to make a change, you may wish to show your GP the General Medical Council guidance on this issue.

If you’re still having problems, read our Common healthcare issues (and what to do) page which explains how to handle problems at GP surgeries and raise complaints.

What happens next

The NHS has multiple different systems that store details about patients. Most of these will be automatically updated when you tell your GP surgery, but you may find some hospitals or other NHS services are not automatically updated, and you may have to tell them as well. Often the services that are not automatically updated includes NHS gender clinics, so if you have a referral to an NHS gender clinic, you may want to check that they know about your change in personal details.

Other things you need to do

During your life the NHS will invite you to a number of screening tests for common conditions. As the prevalence of these conditions differs between demographic groups, some tests only invite people who have “female” on their record, and some tests only invite people who have “male” on their record. This can mean people who have changed their sex marker can invited to the wrong tests for the body parts they have, or not be automatically invited to tests that would be important.

If you have changed the sex marker on your medical records, you may not be sent automatic invitations to make appointments for cancer screening that you may need. For example, a trans man who still has breasts may not receive a reminder to go for breast screening. You may need to ask your GP to arrange these tests for you instead of being invited automatically, or ask your GP to make sure that you are added to the list of people to be invited.

In Scotland, you will normally be invited to the correct tests automatically (unless the sex marker on your records was changed before 2016).

Breast screening

People with breasts over 50 ought to be invited for breast cancer screening every 3 years. If you are not automatically invited for this, you can request a referral for a mammogram.

You can read more about breast screening tests for trans people, including information about what happens during the appointment, and useful tips for attending a breast screening appointment, on the OUTPatients website.

Cervical screening

Anyone over the age of 25 with a cervix should be invited for a cervical smear. People with a cervix should have a smear every 3 years between the ages of 25 and 49, then every 5 years after that.

If you are not automatically invited for this, you can make an appointment at your GP surgery for a cervical smear, and from 1st April 2025 you should be able to tell your GP surgery that you would like ‘opt-in’ to automatic invitations.

Some trans specific services offer cervical smears to trans people that need them, you will find details in our directory of trans inclusive organisations or via OUTpatients’ clinic map.

If you don’t have a cervix, but you receive an automatic invitation to a cervical smear, your GP surgery can also ask for these automatic invitations to stop.

You can read more about cervical screening tests for trans people, including information about what happens during the appointment, and useful tips for attending a cervical screening appointment, on the OUTPatients Remove the Doubt page, and on the OUTPatients My Cervix, My Service page.

Prostate screening

GPs have to be mindful that trans women and some non-binary people might still have a prostate and the possibility of prostate cancer, although rare, is still a possibility. If you are concerned, you can request a prostate check from your doctor.

You can read more about prostate cancer in trans women and non-binary people who have a prostate on the Prostate Cancer UK website.

More information

You can find detailed information about cancer screening for trans people from OUTpatients, the UK’s LGBTIQ+ Cancer Charity, and also on the Cancer Research UK website.

You can read more about screening tests in particular parts of the country:

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