Pap Smear

What is a Pap smear?

A Pap smear - or Pap test - is a medical procedure in which a sample of cells from a woman’s cervix  is collected and spread (smeared) on a microscope slide. (The cervix is the narrow passage at the end of the uterus that connects with the vagina.) The collected cells are examined under a microscope for the presence of abnormal cells.  It is analyzed by a specially-trained cytotechnologist according to a uniform standardized system.  All abnormal findings are then reviewed by a Pathologist.

A Pap smear is a simple, quick, and painless screening test. Its specificity and sensitivity, while extremely good, are not perfect.  Therefore, a few women develop cervical cancer despite having regular, normal Pap tests.  In most cases, a Pap test does identify minor cellular abnormalities at a point when the condition is most easily treatable, and before they have a chance to become malignant. 

Pap smears are recommended for all women starting at age 18, or upon becoming sexually active.  The frequency with which a woman has Pap smears should be recommended by her doctor.  A woman’s health history, including previous Pap smears, is essential to reading the current Pap smear.  The diagnosis consists of a summary of what has been found on the Pap smear analysis, and determines the follow-up and, treatment options if appropriate.

Cancer of the cervix is a preventable disease.  Up to 80% of women diagnosed with invasive cancer of the cervix have not had a Pap smear in the past 5 years.

The Pap smear is not intended to detect other forms of cancer (such as those of the ovary, vagina, or uterus). A gynecologic or pelvic exam, which usually is done at the same time as the Pap smear, is used to detect cancer in those organs.

This information is provided as educational purposes only and is no substitute for specific medical advice.