A pap smear, or pap test, is a medical procedure for females that involves swabbing and studying cells from the cervix to check for changes and the possibility of cervical cancer.
History
Dr. George Papanicolaou researched and published this medical technique in the early 1900s, hence the name "pap" test. His discovery greatly impacted the number of cervical cancer findings in women, since doctors could then catch the cancer before it became fatal.
Benefits
Getting a pap test done is very beneficial to a woman's health. Pap smears detect cancerous cells and other abnormalities in the cervix. Typically, woman should begin to have pap smears done at the age of 18 if they are sexually active or if cervical cancer runs in the family, or at the age of 21 if they are not sexually active or don't have a family history of cancer of the cervix.
Frequency
The frequency of getting a pap smear really varies by your health and family health history. Typically, women under 30 years of age should get a yearly pap smear exam. Women ages 30 to 65 should get a pap smear every two to three years if they have had normal results for three or more years in a row. Women 65 and older can usually stop having pap smears. However, these guidelines do not apply if a woman: has a very weak immune system, is HIV-positive or whose mother was exposed to diethylstilbestrol (a synthetic nonsteroidal estrogen pill) while pregnant.
Procedure
Usually, pap smears are done during pelvic exams. The test is quick and easy but sometimes slightly painful, posing some level of discomfort. During the exam, your doctor inserts an instrument called a speculum into your vagina in order to see the cervix. Then, your doctor uses a swab to collect cells from around your cervix.
Importance
Even if you're not sexually active or have a family history of cervical cancer, having a yearly pap smear test is important. Pap tests not only detect cancer, they can find infections and abnormal cells that could be deadly if left undetected.
When to Stop
For healthy women over the age of 65, it is not necessary to continue getting pap smears during a pelvic exam. However, it is recommended, since having a pap smear could potentially save you thousands of dollars in medical bills if something were to go wrong. If you have had a history of pap smears that came back showing abnormalities, it is recommended that you continue to have pap smears until you have three years of normal tests.
Expert Insight
To protect yourself from other viruses also detected by pap smears such as human papillomavirus, doctors recommend getting an HPV vaccination. Doctors also recommended that a woman have a pap smear done every six months if her test came back positive for abnormalities.
Tags: cervical cancer, sexually active, active have, active have family, came back, cells from
