do i have this right about smear tests?

[tefley]

So, last time I had a smear test, I got a letter saying I was negative for HPV and therefore no further tests were done on the sample like looking at the cells.

I haven't had any sexual contact since my last test, therefore there's no way my HPV status can have changed. So am I correct in saying there's no point in me having a another smear test unless I did have sexual contact?

I'm confused because I tried to explain this to a nurse and the receptionist at my GP clinic, but they were both insistent I come in, and I've been getting multiple texts and letters about it.

My situation is a bit more complicated than most- I have vagnismus which makes these kinds of things genuinely excrutiating. I'm trying to work through it, and I'm worried an unpleasant experience will set me back. The appointment is tomorrow and have been prescribed valium to try to stop the muscle spasms, but it just seems like a lot to go through when (if I've got it right), the sample won't even be tested?

@Tiredandweary1987 you say that only having one sexual partner meaning you can't get HPV is a misconception- how else do you get it please?

If a virgin has only ever had sex with another virgin how do they get HPV? My understanding was that it is sexually transmitted.

I had my last one done in the colposcopy chair @jessieminto and like you say it makes a huge difference. Mine was done privately and I've never had the option on the NHS despite crying in pain.

The consultant who did the last one said that due to the position of my cervix it would be nearly impossible to do the smear on a bed in a GP surgery. It's a shame no one ever told me that before.

You don’t have to go for a smear at all so they are wrong to “insist”. It’s offered and you can take up the offer if you want. They shouldn’t bully women into it the way they do, like it’s some kind of civic duty. Cervical cancer isn’t a common cancer anyway, look at the stats https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/health-professional/cancer-statistics/statistics-by-cancer-type/cervical-cancer
The HPV swab test isn’t yet available on the NHS. Hopefully they will make it available in the future.

where do you buy them-havent had sex for years but still want to check

Cervical cancer survivor here...go for your smear test. Seriously, go. I assure you the poking and prodding that follows a cancer diagnosis is so much more intrusive than a smear. However uncomfortable, please go.

Thanks @SherbertLemons , my post was definitely "is this necessary for my specific situation" rather than not wanting to go. Glad you are in recovery now

Not to derail the thread but vaginismus is more than just being uncomfortable - in my last one the pain was so incredible I started getting blotches in my vision. It literally feels like you're being stabbed. And then the issue is that because the strong pelvic muscles go into spasm the HCP really struggles to actually carry out the procedure.

I did an self STD swab a while ago and was being no nonsense about it and just trying complete it using a huge amount of force but it was impossible.

I can't even explain it - it's honestly baffling to me writing this post that I have no control over it and why this is happening.

I have regular nerve blocks and procedures for another condition and happy to let doctors get on with it despite pain, this just seems to be a whole other ball game sadly!

As I understand it, it can be passed from any sexual contact. Right down to sexual touching.
not just from penetration. I think it’s less common from sexual touching, but the risk is still there.

I was very upset when I received the result from my last smear test: they said they had destroyed the sample without looking at it as I didn't have HPV. I hadn't been told that this had changed and I feel like my consent had been obtained under false pretences.
It was not a pleasant experience, having taken 2 people and 3 attempts.

I'm not having any more smear tests. I will do the home test for HPV because that seems sensible but I am no longer consenting to an invasive and often painful procedure that I no longer need to endure.
(Yeah sometimes smears don't hurt, but I've had about 2 that didn't, 3 that did but at least got a sample and at least 2 total failures where the pain was too much and I couldn't stand it. That was before I learned that small speculums existed. My first one was the worst: this massive awful metal contraption that hurt so much: and I had beloved all the "smears don't hurt" stuff and was shocked & horrified that actually that is not the case for me.)

Believed

I was very upset when I received the result from my last smear test: they said they had destroyed the sample without looking at it as I didn't have HPV. I hadn't been told that this had changed and I feel like my consent had been obtained under false pretences.It was not a pleasant experience, having taken 2 people and 3 attempts.

@HappyHolidai I completely understand and I felt like this too after my last one. I was really frustrated I'd gone through all that for the sample to not even be tested.

I think the problem it needs to be set up this way for efficiency - it's going to catch the most cases of cancer which is what it's there for.

For the subset of people like us, it would be far better if they could offer the swab option first to test for HPV, then escalate to a full smear test if positive.

These stories make me sad and cross.

I too have vaginismus, my last 3 smears have been horrific. The little libido I did have was destroyed and I haven't had sex for years now.

I heard about the HPV tests, so bought one, sent it off and got a negative result.

I told my GP ... who told me I still had to go for a smear

I went to the nurse, who couldn't do it ... I then was referred to the specialist GP ... who couldn't do it! I was then referred to the colposcopy clinic who managed it in about 30 seconds!

The gynaecologist told me that - even without the other issues - it was blatantly obvious that my cervix is so tilted that it was practically impossible without being in a lithotomy chair.

I got a letter 2 weeks later to say that as my sample was HPV negative they has destroyed my sample. So the three invasive and painful attempts - weren't even necessary

I can't describe how upsetting and traumatic the whole experience has been.

Pardon my ignorance, but is what you refer to as a 'smear test' not the same as the 'Pap smear' women routinely get in the US? The Pap smear tests for abnormal and precancerous cells, not just for the presence of HPV as not all cervical cancers are caused by HPV. Although I know the great majority of them are, between 5-11% of cervical cancers are NOT HPV related.

That is what used to happen here in the UK now they have moved over to just testing for active HPV

Hi OP! You may have already received this response as I've not read all replies but the nurse who did mine recently was so informative about it all. This is what I was told:

The cells around the cervix are always changing over time (just like all cells- they die, regrow etc). She said when they are in a state of change that's when they are vulnerable and this is what the smear is looking at. If the cells are in a state of change during or between smear tests, then they have a higher chance of allowing any dormant HPV in and therefore an increased risk of cervical cancer developing. Essentially, if you have no HPV but the cells are changing then you should be fine but if you have HPV at the time of your smear then you are likely to be invited for further testing/treatment in case your cells go in to a state of change or already have. Then to top it off, as some previous posters have said, the HPV can be present in most women but lie dormant and not get to high enough levels to come up during the screening, however some time later the levels can raise to a point where they can influence the cervical cells.

A lot of information but she made it so clear what happens, why it happens and if something was detected, what the next steps would be. Fabulous nurse!

Definitely get your smear test.

I'd never refuse a smear, it can pick up abnormal cells which if left can turn pre cancerous and then cancerous.

I don't mean this to be rude, but have you read the thread? They don't actually test the sample for abnormal cells, they check for HPV which can be done with a cotton bud type swab.

If there is no HPV - they don't check the cells that they have removed from your cervix.

My status changed to HPV positive and I had had no sexual activity in the interim - have my follow up smear tomorrow actually one year on

Thank you for the clarification! I think it's a bit short-sighted of the NHS to just do an HPV smear. I mean if someone gave me a drink and said "It's 5-11% chance that there is poison in this drink, but we didn't bother to test it" I wouldn't touch that drink!!

If there were two comparable 'dick smears', I bet the NHS would pay for the one that tests for everything!

I do wonder if it will be found in years to come to have been a bad idea. They routinely offer HPV vaccine now to teens (I was too old). I wonder if one day smears will be a thing of the past (not suggesting anyone vaccinated doesn't currently need one).

So if I've only ever had any form of sexual contact with my DH and vice versa I'm safe?

Yes they do. I held my friends hand through months of uncertainty and several lasering off of abnormal cells off the back of her scheduled smear.

The quote didn't work but I replied below.

I don't think you're reading the replies properly @TiptoeThroughTheToadstools

Currently, if the sample is not positive for HPV, the cells are not tested for abnormality.

For people for who a smear test is excrutiating (with long term impacts), it is frustrated they are being put through this procedure when a negative swab test would give the same result without the pain.

*frustrating

I have read the replies, thank you. It doesn't however change what I've seen/experienced with my friend.