Most deaths from
cancer of the cervix (the lower part of the uterus, or womb) could be avoided if women had regular checkups with
Pap smears. This cancer can take several years to develop and most often is seen in women 40 years of age or older. Getting routinely screened can help identify cervical cancer in its early stages, when it is highly curable. Screening even finds precancerous lesions so they can be removed before cancer ever starts.
Women who haven’t been screened for cervical cancer in 3 years or more or who have never been tested are especially urged to have a Pap smear.
The American Cancer Society, U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and American Academy of Family Physicians make similar recommendations for women 30 years of age and older who have been sexually active:
- Once you are 30 years old, as long as you have no new risk factors and have had normal results 3 years in a row, you should have a Pap smear at least every 3 years. At this age, you have the option of having a Pap smear with an HPV DNA test.
How often you should be tested depends on your risk factors, such as exposure to DES, previous diagnosis of cervical cancer, high-risk sexual behavior, HIV, or a compromised immune system. If you have any of these risk factors, you should be tested more frequently than every 3 years. Ask your health care provider for a recommendation on frequency. If you have had a hysterectomy, discuss whether continued screening is of value. In some cases, it is.
Even if you do not need a Pap smear each year, for most women, an annual pelvic exam is still recommended, reminds the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
Links
To sign up for a personal Pap test scheduling reminder,
click here.
Sources
American Cancer Society. DES Exposure: Questions and Answers. Available online at http://www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/content/CRI_2_6x_DES_Exposure_Questions_and_Answers.asp through http://www.cancer.org. Accessed September 2008.
American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Cervical cancer
screening: testing can start later and occur less often under new ACOG
recommendations (press release). 31 Jul 2003. Available on the Internet
at http://www.acog.org/from_home/publications/press_releases/nr07-31-03-1.cfm through http://www.acog.org. Accessed 15 Jul 2004 and 18 Jan 2008.
American College of Physicians. New pap guidelines reduce screening, but raise concerns about compliance. Apr 2003. Observer. Available on the Internet at http://www.acponline.org/journals/news/apr03/pap_guides.htm?hp through http://www.acponline.org. Accessed 15 Jul 2004 and 18 Jan 2008.
American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Human papillomaviruses and cancer: questions and answers. 8 Jun 2006. Available on the Internet through http://www.medem.com. Accessed 18 Jan 2008.
American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Cervical cytology screening (practice bulletin 45). Aug 2003. Available on the Internet at http://www.guideline.gov. Accessed 8 Feb 2008.
American Society for Colposcopy and Cervical Pathology. What women
should know about HPV and cervical health. 2003. Available on the
Internet at http://www.asccp.org/patient_edu.shtml through http://www.asccp.org. Accessed 17 Jan 2008.
American Academy of Family Physicians. Summary of recommendations for clinical preventive services (rev 6.4). 15 Aug 2007. Available on the Internet at http://www.guideline.gov. Accessed 4 Feb 2008.
American Cancer Society. American Cancer Society guidelines for the
early detection of cancer. 28 Mar 2007. Available on the Internet at
http://www.cancer.org/docroot/PED/content/PED_2_3X_ACS_Cancer_Detection_Guidelines_36.asp?sitearea=PED
through http://www.cancer.org. Accessed 4 Feb 2008.
American Cancer Society. Overview: cervical cancer: What causes cancer of the cervix? Can it be prevented? Available on the Internet at http://www.cancer.org. Accessed 10 Aug 2004; 2006 revision accessed 8 Feb 2008.
Smith RA, Cokkinides V, and Eyre HJ, for the American Cancer Society. American Cancer Society guidelines for the early detection of cancer, 2003. CA Cancer J Clin 53:27-43. Available on the Internet at http://caonline.amcancersoc.org/cgi/content/full/53/1/27 through http://caonline.amcancersoc.org. Accessed 5 Aug 2004 and 8 Feb 2008.
US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Basic facts on screening
and the Pap test. Oct 2003. PDF available for download at
http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/cervical/pdf/cc_basic.pdf through http://www.cdc.gov. Accessed 2 Aug
2004 and 18 Jan 2008.
US Preventive Services Task Force. Screening for cervical cancer (release date Jan 2003). Available on the Internet at http://www.ahcpr.gov/clinic/uspstf/uspscerv.htm through http://www.ahcpr.gov. Accessed 15 July 2004 and 8 Feb 2008.
US Preventive Services Task Force. Screening for cervical cancer: recommendations and rationale (AHRQ pub. 03-515A). Jan 2003. Available on the Internet at http://www.ahrq.gov/clinic/3rduspstf/cervcan/cervcanrr.htm through http://www.ahrq.gov. Accessed 8 Feb 2008.
US Food and Drug Administration. Cervical Cancer Screening. FDA Consumer Magazine. January-February 2004. Available online at http://www.fda.gov/Fdac/features/2004/104_cancer.html through http://www.fda.gov. Accessed September 2008.
