Does an Abnormal Pap Smear Mean I Have Cancer?

Each year, approximately 11,500 women in the United States receive a diagnosis of cervical cancer, and more than 4,000 lose their lives to the disease. While these numbers have remained steady in recent years, they’re significantly lower than decades ago when invasive cervical cancer was a leading cause of cancer-related death among women.

This Cervical Cancer Awareness Month, the team here at North Atlantic OB/GYN wants to bring your attention to the importance of Pap smears, an incredibly effective screening tool that’s helped reduce cervical cancer incidences and complications.

Routine Pap tests enable earlier detection of cervical cancer. It’s not uncommon to experience abnormal results – about 3.8% of tests come back abnormal. However, these results are rarely an immediate indication of cancer. 

Pap smears role in detecting cervical cancer

Cervical cancer screening is a critical preventive tool for women aged 21-65. Depending on your age and risk factors, screening options include:

• Pap tests every three years
• HPV (human papillomavirus) tests every five years (starting at age 30)
• Combined Pap and HPV tests every five years (starting at age 30)

Pap smears detect abnormal cervical cells, while HPV testing identifies infections from high-risk HPV types 16 and 18, which cause most cervical cancers. Together, these tests proactively provide early cervical cancer detection.

What it’s like to get a Pap smear and HPV test

During a pelvic exam, we perform a pap smear. We use a swab or a slender brush to gently collect cells from the cervix. We then examine these samples under a microscope to detect abnormal changes or cancerous cells in their earliest stages.

We conduct HPV tests alongside Pap smears. A swab collects cervical cells to check for high-risk HPV infections, which often cause the abnormal changes detected by the Pap test.

The meaning of abnormal test results

Hearing that your Pap test results are abnormal can be unsettling, but it doesn’t necessarily mean you have cervical cancer. You may have a false abnormal result if you used vaginal medicine, cream, gels, or douches within 48 hours of a screening test. Abnormal results may also occur if you had intercourse recently or are menstruating. 

Minor abnormalities, often caused by HPV, may resolve naturally without treatment. If any of these reasons are suspected, we will recommend a follow-up test within a few months to see if your results resolve.

If we notice more serious abnormalities or cervical precancers, we’ll recommend timely intervention as they’re more likely to progress into cervical cancer without treatment.

Following an abnormal pap smear

If we detect serious changes, we may recommend a colposcopy. This in-office procedure uses magnification to assess the severity of abnormal cell changes.

Based on your colposcopy results, treatment may involve removing abnormal cells with a loop electrosurgical excision procedure (LEEP). This precise technique removes a thin layer of cervical tissue to prevent further complications.

Regular Pap and HPV testing save lives by catching abnormalities early, when treatment is most effective. If you’ve received abnormal Pap results or are due for cervical cancer screening, don’t wait. Schedule a consultation today. Contact our team at North Atlantic OB/GYN.