Yuck! My cervix hurts after my first pap smear post kids.
Is there really evidence to suggest it improves outcomes for women?
Owwwwwwwww!!!! It huuurrrttts! Next time I'm getting my midwife to do it.
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Yuck! My cervix hurts after my first pap smear post kids.
Is there really evidence to suggest it improves outcomes for women?
Owwwwwwwww!!!! It huuurrrttts! Next time I'm getting my midwife to do it.
Ouch! I don't think it should hurt.
Hope you feel better soon.
oohh mine have never hurt before :hug:
Did they mention that there was any aggravation on the cervix at all?
I get one every 2yrs and yep I reckon they are uncomfortable but some people are more rough than others!!
It shouldn't be painful though?
I'm still in denial that mine is 6 months overdue :tmi: but tomorrow I will make an appointment.
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Is this a serious question or a joke? Since they introduced them deaths from cervical cancer have been reduced by about 90% in places with regular screening programs.
If the practitioner is too rough with the instruments they CAN cause physical trauma to the cervix, which can lead to a discomfort of varying levels, and in some cases, bleeding. And sometimes its just uncomfortable, and we are more 'aware' of how our cervix feels and become a little more focused on it, ITMS?
I'm WELL overdue for mine :hide: I know it needs to be done, but I just don't have the balls to do it after birth trauma from DD. I need bigger balls now :ninja:
Hope your cervix is happy again soon Arcadia :comfort:
Thanks for the replies- onyx it was a serious question. It was one of those things is never looked into just knew I had to have done iykwim? I think I was just looking for reasons to avoid it ever again!
I'm still in pain and have taken Panadol. I told my mum and shes appalled it hurt! I think the doctor must've had an off day or my cervix was being shy...
The one I had after my first son was sooo painful, I'm not looking forward to the next one. But thanks for the reminder to make an appointment!
I have been doing some reading about pap smears, and I came across an interesting study based in the UK
One of the most quoted sentences is that according to the NHS schedule of screening, 1000 women need to be screened for 35 years to prevent one death.
Other sources point to countries like Finland, which look more closely at a women's unique history, so that at 29 with one sexual partner I really only need to be screened every five years. This should increases to three yearly as I age.
I also found this interestng site which (although slightly conspiracy theorist) looks at the coercion of women into pap tests as part of the US screening program, which even screens young women who haven't had sex (in this age group the risks of damage to the cervix outweigh the benefits since hpv is the leading cause of cervical cancer in this age group).
See more hereMedical Privacy, A Patient Oriented Discussion: Women's Privacy & Modesty Concerns:
A report by RM DeMay published in 2000 in the American Jnl of Clinical Pathology, "Should we abandon pap smear testing" says that of the 1% of women who'll get this cancer, ONE THIRD will have a false negative test result and may delay seeing a Dr for symptoms, reassured by the test result and therefore, face a later diagnosis - so this group may be disadvantaged by testing...that leaves 0.66% of women to benefit from screening.
Apply your risk profile and your chance of benefit may be tiny.
The other fact - two yearly testing means almost 78% of women will have biopsies, with only a very small number having any sign of cancer - annual screening means 95% will have biopsies - three yearly 65% (L.Koutsky, Cancer Prevention, Fall 2004, Issue 4 & DeMay Article)
A false positive causes enormous anxiety and biopsies are very unpleasant and painful - some women take weeks or months to heal and some are left with permanent damage that can cause problems with fertility and during pregnancy.
I can see that pap tests have reduced cervical cancer rates, but the risk of the cancer is also very low, especially in my age group. I think the push for two yearly tests is perhaps based on keeping in the minds of women, rather than for efficacy of screening and reduction in mortality. I also question the impact of having so many tests throughout a woman's reproductive life, since they can cause damage to the cervix, which is linked to cervical lips in birth.
I'm so sorry you were in pain after your pap smear! That's not cool and shouldn't happen :(
I agree with the studies you've cited and I've made the decision at this point to have smears no more often than every 3 years. I've never had dodgy results so far so I don't want to aggravate the issue by poking something that could be better served being left alone.
I also looked into it a couple years back, and was able to give up the guilt in not having one (for now). it didn't go down well on BB and so i shut up about it, so thank you for posting your research.
Death is not the only outcome that should be considered when weighing up the benefits of screening. There is a world of difference between treatment for early cervical changes versus the huge personal costs of treatment for invasive/advanced cancers, with all the associated comorbidities and enduring side effects, plus weeks months or years of personal suffering involved. Boiling it down to 'deaths prevented' and little else is very poor use of statistics.
And I don't have the means to check right now but I'm pretty sure there have been advances in the screening technologies since 2000 (around 2003-04 i think) so you would really want to be looking at more recent figures re false readings to get a more accurate picture.
I have a question. Thought I may as well post here instead of starting a new thread.
My doctor told me today the ONLY cause of cervical cancer is HPV. That's wrong right? Makes people like me who have only ever had one partner more comfortable and less likely to get regular pap smears in the future (if I believed her).
I have had other doctors tell me it can also be caused by damage to the cervix. So if I'm not going to get HPV and the only damage I seem to be getting to my cervix is from the actual pap smears (had one today and had bleeding after) it seems a bit counter productive doesn't it????
Just pondering, I will be continuing to get pap smears for peace of mind anyway.
Hmmmm...I thought hpv was a leading cause but not the only cause...?
I think if you are under 30 with only one sexual partner every three to four yearly checks would be plenty. What did your doctor say?
Sorry you got a rough one too :hug: maybe it's a post baby thing????
It's the same as any cancer, hpv is a causative factor. But you also have to take genes and lifestyle into account. Cancer is caused by the growth of abnormal cells that can be caused by many things.
Sent from HTC wildfire using TAPATALK, so forgive any spelling errors its a small keyboard.
Mine have never hurt, but certainly arent comfortable.
And without papsmears I would be dead, as I had cervical cancer, and part of my cervix removed at age 17.
Also I dont have HPV, and was a virgin when the cancer started, so HPV was definitely not a factor here
Oh that's awful trishalicious! Can I ask when you started having pap smears? I thought the general advice was women didn't need to have pap smears until sexually active? I certainly didn't have one until I was 20.
Thought so, nice one doctor :thumbdown:
So sorry to hear that trish, so lucky you found it.
Arcadia- I thought it was when you were 18 or sexually active, whichever one comes first.
I had my first one at 18 or 19 I think. It was actually awful. It didn't hurt or anything like that but I'd never had anything like that done before and I was very young and had only just become sexually active and I just felt so...I don't know, violated or something. Not sure if that's the right word, the doctor was perfectly nice, I was just young. A lot less traumatic than cancer though I imagine.
I'm another who was saved by a pap smear at 19. I had only had 1 partner at the time and used condoms so very careful. But I did have quite advanced displaysia, had some surgery and a positive outcome. After 10 years of normal yearly tests I was able to have them every 2 years now. Actually I need to book in. Mine have never hurt so I wouldn't be going back to that doctor for a test again if I was you!
That's so lucky Trish that they caught it! :hug: sorry you had to go through that.
I agree, I think pap smears, as awful as they are, are SO vital!! I always have one every 2 years, never any less. I think it's so worth it.
My cycle was irregular, and very painful, so they started investigating why.:
Ive had miscarriages due to my cervix, but I was definitely lucky!