Pap Test

A Pap test is a procedure where a sample of cells is collected (usually by a doctor or nurse) from the cervix of the uterus, the vaginal walls, or the vulvar skin outside of the vagina.  The cells are then analyzed to determine if they are normal or if they are abnormal.  The Pap test is most commonly used to screen for preinvasive or invasive cancers of the uterine cervix.  All women should have a Pap test within three years of becoming sexually active or by the age of 21.

It is relatively inexpensive and it can detect abnormalities before they are visible on clinical examination and most importantly, before a true cancer develops.  The Pap test is not perfect and it is possible for a woman to have an abnormality and the Pap test not detect that abnormality.  However, cervical and vaginal cancers develop slowly so if a woman has regular screening using the Pap test at the time of a pelvic exam, the abnormalities will, in most cases, be detected prior to the development of a life threatening problem.