Cervical cancer usually develops very slowly and takes approximately 10 - 20 years for the virus infection to develop into abnormal cervical cells, and then cervical cancer. Cervical cancer rates peak between the ages of 25-49 so you are less likely to develop the disease over 50 if you have always ...

If your biopsy has shown CIN2, there is a moderate chance the cells will become cancerous if left untreated- Therefore it is very important to treat this properly. Treatment options include the following: 1)Large loop excision of the transformation zone (LLETZ) which uses a thin wire loop with an el...

It is still recommended that you attend for your smears regularly even if you had the HPV vaccine,. The HPV vaccine in the UK only protects against 4 strains of HPV which are linked with cervical cancer -however, there are other types of HPV that can (less commonly) be responsible for cervical cance...

Even if you are no longer sexually active, you should continue to attend for cervical smears up until the age of 64. Human papilloma viruses (HPV) are responsible for the majority of cases of cervical cancer and if you have been sexually active during your life, you may have been exposed to this vir...

This is a very common issue and one that many women find distressing. It is worth informing the person doing your smear (whether it be your practice nurse or GP) in advance that you find the procedure extremely uncomfortable-either ring or email the practice to inform them. You can also ask the rece...

Following a partial hysterectomy (where the cervix is left intact), you would have needed to continue on regular cervical screening with smears until the age of 64. As you are now 70, you would not be eligible for cervical smears as part of the UK screening programme. As cervical cancer develops so ...

It is very unlikely they tested for HPV 20 years ago when you had an abnormal test result as testing for HPV prior to testing for abnormal cells has only recently been introduced to the UK. To reassure you, it is very unlikely that you will have abnormal cells if you do not have HPV -However, in vie...

If you had a full hysterectomy, the neck of your cervix is usually removed as part of this operation. This would have been tested at the time for any concerning changes - If there were no suspicious changes at that time, you no longer need any further smears.