Pap Smear Specialist

What is a Pap smear?

A Pap smear is a fast and easy test that lets your provider look for changes in the cells that line your cervix, which is the opening to your uterus. Abnormal cells may indicate that you’re at risk for uterine cancer.

However, most Pap smears are normal. If your cells are abnormal, the team at Swor Women’s Care recommends you for more testing and possible early treatment.

What happens when I get a Pap smear?

A Pap smear is part of your well-woman exam. You may also get a Pap smear if you want to be tested for sexually transmitted diseases (STDs).

During a Pap smear, you lie back on the exam table with your feet in the stirrups. Your provider inserts an instrument called a speculum into your vagina and then expands it so they can see your cervix. 

They quickly take a swab of the cells in and around the cervical opening and then remove the speculum. Pap tests take about 10 minutes.

What happens when I get the results of my Pap smear?

The lab takes a week or two to analyze the cells from your Pap smear. Once the results are ready, the team at Swor Women’s Care lets you know. If your results are normal, you don’t have to do anything else; you’re not at risk for cervical cancer.

If your results are abnormal, that doesn’t mean you have cervical cancer. The abnormal cells may be precancerous changes, the sign of an infection with human papillomavirus (HPV) or herpes, or another condition entirely. 

Your provider may redo the Pap smear or recommend you for another test called colposcopy, which is similar to a Pap smear.

If you have precancerous changes, your provider may recommend various procedures to remove them, including cryosurgery (cold therapy) or surgical removal. If the cervical cells are cancerous, you’re referred to an oncologist.