What is a Pap Test?
A Pap Test is a routine screening procedure designed to find the earliest indications of cervical cancer. If caught early enough, the cure rate for cervical cancer and pre-cancer is very high.
The Pap Test involves the physician (usually a General Practitioner, during a routine patient examination) collecting cells from the cervix using a small spatula or brush. These cells are spread on a glass slide and sprayed with a preservative. The glass slide containing cells (also known as a Pap smear) is then forwarded to the Cervical Cancer Screening Laboratory (CCSL) for examination under a microscope. The physician receives the CCSL report and follows up with the patient.
Where is it done?
At doctor's offices and clinics. Pap tests are done by family physicians, obstetricians, gynecologists, nurse practitioners, registered nurses, midwives and naturopathic doctors.
How do I prepare?
- Plan to go for your Pap test when you're not having your period, if possible
- Avoid douching or using treatments, lubricants or foam inside your vagina for 48 hours before your appointment
- Remember any unusual signs, for example bleeding between periods or bleeding after sex, so you can tell your health care provider
- Write down your questions
How is it done?
Your doctor or nurse asks you to remove your clothing from the waist down and gives you a drape to cover yourself. Then he or she leaves the room. When the doctor or nurse returns, you are asked to lie on the examining table with your legs in stirrups and your bottom to the edge of the table.
To perform the procedure, your doctor or nurse inserts an instrument called a speculum into your vagina for a clear view of your cervix. She or he gently collects a sample of cells from your cervix using a small spatula or brush.
The test only takes a few minutes. It might feel a bit uncomfortable, but that’s likely because you’re tense. A Pap test is safe. You won't be injured. Try to relax, and remember to protect yourself from cervical cancer you only need this test once every one or two years.
Where does the sample go?
The sample collected in your Pap test goes to the Cervical Cancer Screening Laboratory in Vancouver. A technologist examines your sample under a microscope to look for abnormal cells.
What happens to the slide when it gets to the Laboratory?
Laboratory employees immerse the glass slide in a special dye to stain the cells and make the cell structures more visible. (This special stain is named after the inventor, Papanicolaou, and became the basis for the name of the test.) Once stained, the slide is covered with a thin glass to preserve the cells and stain. Finally, specially trained medical technologists examine the slide under a microscope, looking for suspicious or abnormal cells. If abnormal cells are detected, a pathologist may be asked to further review the slide and report on the findings.
What about my result?
Within six to eight weeks of your Pap test, the Cervical Cancer Screening Program will send a report to your doctor or nurse. She or he will usually contact you only if abnormal cells were found.
Most women will have a normal result. In this case, continue with your regular screening.
Abnormal Pap test results require follow-up.
Is cervical screening (the Pap test) reliable?
Cervical screening finds most cases of cervical cancer, but no screening test is perfect. Regular screening offers the best protection against cervical cancer.
To find out about new directions in cervical screening, read about the
HPV Focal Study and the HPV vaccine.
How often should I get screened?
Once a year for the first three years. If these results are normal, then you can get tested every two years.
Screening may be stopped after age 69 if you have had no abnormal results. Women who have passed menopause or had their tubes tied should be screened.
If you’re not sure what to do, or you’ve had a total hysterectomy (surgery to remove the entire uterus with cervix), ask your doctor or health care provider what’s best for you.
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