This has been a concern of mine for the past two years now. It all started when a pap smear I had came back with abnormal cells. The doctor scheduled a colposcopy (which seems to be a fancy name for a pap smear done while wearing binoculars) and that came back just fine. In the mean time I agonized over the possible cause of the abnormal cells–HPV, cancer, whatever the worst case scenario was, I was there!
But everything came back fine and they scheduled a follow up pap smear for six months. That came back fine, too–until the next one with came back with abnormal cells. Another colposcopy and that came back fine. I had my six month follow up just recently and that had abnormal cells. The doctor said it was abnormal in the same way my previous one was and that I shouldn’t worry and just schedule my six month exam as usual. If that one comes back funky I’ll have another colposcopy. She said that this is very common and I shouldn’t worry and, also, that there’s pretty much nothing I can do but wait.
My question is, how common is this? Am I worrying over nothing? There’s so much info on the 'net–and so much of it contradicting each other–that I just don’t have a clear idea of how I should feel about all this. Is my warranty starting to run out at 35?
It’s not unusual to have a “bad” pap smear. The slide could have been contaminated, the test done badly, or you just have some active cells. This site gives some good information on what exactly they are looking for when you have a pap smear.
Don’t worry about this. It seems like your doctor is keeping close tabs on you, and that’s a good thing. If anything went wrong, they will catch it quickly.
I’ve had several bad pap smears, and eventually they did a small cervical biopsy - ow ow ow ow ow! But even that showed normal. My doctor says that my cells have very active nuclei - which is one of the things they check for.
Thanks, DeVena! I was hoping to hear from someone else who’d been there, too. And thanks for that site. I’d looked at so many web sites when this first came up that the only purpose that served was to worry me even more.
Same thing happened to my mother, 2 good paps, 1 bad, 2 good, 1 bad, kept going like that until she finally got 3 good ones in a row which lets her back to one every other year.
Like De Vena said, it’s probably not you that has a problem.
Just to give you some peace of mind - I have had several abnormal paps and that means come back in 6 months for another. usually the second time they’re a-ok and I come back in a year for my regular.
None of my doctors (I’ve had 3 different gynos in the last few years) has been the slightest bit concerned. I think they see it all the time. No one ever did a colposcopy because they all said I had to have 2 bad ones in a row to warrant one.
Not only have I had my share of abnormal paps, but my godmother’s two girls have them constantly and there’s really nothing wrong with them.
Isn’t being a woman…uh…fascinating?
I sympathize with you, too. The first time I had an abnorbal pap I freaked out. Now it’s just a usual thing.
I hope not, or mine would have started running out when I was 19. I was pregnant at the time, and had an abnormal pap. I was terrified, but everything was fine.
I had one abnormal pap at 20 and they went straight in for a cervical biopsy. Major ouch. Nothing was found, and every pap since has been clear. In retrospect, I wish my doc had been more like everyone else’s here and waited. I seriously believe the doc was prone to do the biopsy because he had a med student at the time observing, but I’m a cynic. He also had an ego and a half and zero bedside manner.
Try not to worry, lauramarlane. You just have a happy cervix!
Sorry, I was just picturing those cells partying it up on the slide and looking like they have a hangover instead of laying still in civilized order. Perhaps I should have explained myself.
Do you by any chance have recurrent yeast or bacterial infections, or any itching, burning or discomfort associated with sex? Having a mild infection can muck up Pap results, too, apparently. I’m sure your doc’s already been through all that with you, but sometimes they don’t for whatever reason.
I think an “abnormal” finding is normal, as is the total freak-out that we do. Women really ought to be better counseled about this. I know so many women who have had this scare. Even when it does end up in aggressive treatment (I had surgery), the worry was all outof proportion to the risk to myself.
Incidentally, there is new thinking that body can be given a chance to heal abnormal cells by itself, before jumping in with interventions. So even if a colposcopy does confirm dysplasia, it’s possible your doctor will take a “wait and see” attitude.
The vast majority of abnormal Paps end up being no big deal. But please, please, please keep doing your followups as directed and don’t skip any. Why? Lucky me: I had the first abnormal Pap of my life last October, and it ended up being cervical cancer. If I’d decided to skip a year or two of exams, I might have needed a hysterectomy or worse. As it was, I got off easy: just a LEEP (outpatient, under local anasthesia), and so far all my followups have been fine.
Again, please don’t freak; I am a statistical anomaly. As the others have said, all sorts of things can make your Pap turn out abnormal, and most of them are nothing to worry about.
when my pap came up abnormal, my doc sent me straight for a cervical bio, too. Lucky for me she did, though, because it turns out i had HPV.
Everything else has been clear but i really have to keep on top of my exams.
Actually, CrazyCatLady, I have a history of yeast infections–I’ll go through these nasty times where it seems like I have one after the other. Funny thing is, I never had a weird pap then, but now, while things have seemed to calm down, I’m getting the funky pap smears.
The doc said that sometimes this is just normal. Just my luck–being abnormal is normal for me.
And don’t worry, Eva, I fully intend to keep doing my follow ups!
