What is a Pap smear?
A Pap smear is a test your doctor does to check for signs of cancer of the cervix. The cervix is part of your uterus (womb). During a Pap smear, your doctor takes a sample of cells from your cervix to be tested and examined.
To take the sample, your doctor will put a special instrument called a speculum into your vagina. This helps open your vagina so the sample can be taken. Your doctor will gently clean your cervix with a cotton swab and then collect a sample of cells with a small brush, a tiny spatula or a cotton swab. This sample is put on a glass slide and sent to a lab to be checked under a microscope.
To take the sample, your doctor will put a special instrument called a speculum into your vagina. This helps open your vagina so the sample can be taken. Your doctor will gently clean your cervix with a cotton swab and then collect a sample of cells with a small brush, a tiny spatula or a cotton swab. This sample is put on a glass slide and sent to a lab to be checked under a microscope.
What is the sample checked for?
The cells on the slide are checked for signs that they're changing from normal to abnormal. Cells go through a series of changes before they turn into cancer. A Pap smear can show if your cells are going through these changes long before you actually have cancer. If caught and treated early, cervical cancer is not life-threatening. This is why getting regular Pap smears is so important.
What do the results mean?
A normal Pap smear means that all the cells in your cervix are normal and healthy.
An abnormal Pap smear can be a sign of a number of changes in the cells on your cervix:
An abnormal Pap smear can be a sign of a number of changes in the cells on your cervix:
- Inflammation (irritation). This can be caused by an infection of the cervix, including a yeast infection, infection with the human papillomavirus (HPV) the herpes virus or many other infections.
- Abnormal cells. These changes are called cervical dysplasia. The cells are not cancer cells, but may be precancerous (which means they could eventually turn into cancer).
- More serious signs of cancer. These changes affect the top layers of the cervix but don't go beyond the cervix.
- More advanced cancer.
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