Cervical Smear

 

The cervix is at the lower part of the uterus (womb). The cervix joins the uterus to the vagina. Cervical smear (the Pap Smear named after its inventor, Dr. George Papanicolaou in 1920s) is a quick and simple test for women to detect abnormal cell changes in the cervix, which may progress to cancer if ignored.

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Cervical cancer is preceded by the development of abnormal cells in the cervix. If left untreated, these pre-cancerous cells may change and become cervical cancer over five to ten years. Women with pre-cancerous lesions do not have symptoms. Cervical screening aims to prevent cervical cancer by detecting and treating these abnormalities. Treatment of pre-cancerous lesions has a cure rate that is close to 100%.

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Remember that the cervical smear is a screening test for detecting early abnormal changes in the cervix. When such changes are found, they can be treated before cancer develops. It is NOT a diagnostic test for cervical cancer. A screening test is a test to be done at regular intervals to detect early abnormal changes when an individual has no vaginal symptoms. About 90% of cervical smear results are normal. If abnormal cells are detected on the cervical smear, further tests are needed to see whether the changes are serious or not. Simple treatment is often done as an outpatient procedure and will prevent cancer from developing. At this stage, treatment is usually more simple and successful. If these early changes are left untreated, they may progress to invasive cancer. Abnormalities picked up by a screening test should be confirmed by a diagnostic test.

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Screening locations in Hong Kong:

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