I’ve never had a smear test and I don’t want one either

[Seventeenstars]

Controversial I guess, I’m 36.
I don’t think it’s necessary, as I’ve read about my risk factors and I don’t meet the criteria. All the men I’ve slept with (without protection) were virgins and yes I know they were for sure.
I also have no family history of any cancer.
My partner has prostate cancer in both sides of his family, his dad has it currently and he’s not even been offered a screening test for this.
I find this so frustrating and contradictory when women and men are treated so differently and if you refuse smear or breast screening you’re seen as an awful person, and those who do are morally superior.
Men aren’t coerced into invasive internal examinations.
I have an aversion to having things inserted in me internally and feel I have a right to that decision regarding my body.
There are home tests for HPV available, which I have done myself in the past - all clear.
My question is why do they persist with this archaic procedure when there are other options available?

I keep getting phone calls from my GP surgery trying to persuade me to book a test. I don’t understand why they’re always pushing it, but just totally dismiss other medical issues, which has been my experience several times.
Do they get extra commission for this or something?
There are even pop up ‘clinics’ and drop in sessions going ahead near me.

Of course I know I’ll be bombarded with replies saying I’m selfish, stupid and uneducated. I’ve even read other women saying that those who refuse should be denied any medical care!
But I have done my research and I am more than aware of the implications.

The local GPs had never heard of it or didn't offer it. I expect it is about as available as self-testing in the UK.

Self testing is available in England from this month for anyone who is 6 months overdue. It looks like they just post out automatically with some sort of priority system as they work through the initial backlog. It will be interesting to see how this works in practise.

Look up Jade Goody (if someone hasn't already said that)

I’m so very sorry about your mother, but feel I need to point out that breast cancer isn’t caused by a sexually transmitted virus.

If a woman has never had sex then her risk of cervical cancer will be very low, though not zero (not all cases are caused by HPV, just the majority).
The same cannot be said of breast cancer risk.

Have you looked her up? Her death was not caused by missing her smear test.

Yes, I know. She was too young to have been thought at risk. What I mean is that cancer can strike anyone, of any age and in my view it's daft not to get checked out.

GP surgeries get money for the number of smears they do, which I feel is outrageous as if we work we pay for the NHS through our taxes and NI. If we don't work it's free at the point of need. Probably we get chased more for smears because it's usually done In the surgery. As far as I'm aware there's not the same push to round us up for mammography, but I think there's legislation that there could be of rates keep dropping

It's a quick 5 minutes in and out which gives you peace mind or necessary treatment. No one likes a smear test they're just something we do as grown up women OP.

I totally get that about funds being finite and totally respect that and I don't disagree. But one of my points is that woman going for smears are under the impression that a smear test is 'looking for abnormal cell changes' when for the vast majority it is simply an HPV screen and nothing more. If the OP is testing for HPV herself, she is doing exactly what the NHS do, so she doesn't need to go for smears

Jade had regular smears and regular treatment for cells, her first being at just 16!

How is it unfair? If women want to undergo this 'archaic procedure' (which really is not that bad) they can. If they do not, they can either choose not to have any kind of screening at all or do a home kit as you have said. No one is holding anyone at gunpoint.

Lots of people are being unnecessarily scathing towards OP though. That’s unfair surely.

Of course she hasn't. None of the people using Jade's desperately sad story to argue with OP have.

Then I have misremembered.

That isn't what I'm talking about though? I am disputing OPs assertion that it is 'unfair' that women are encouraged to have smear tests. I haven't said anything about whether she has been treated fairly or not on this thread (I find 70% of comments on MN are rather 'unfair' or unkind)

I think for virgins it is very understandable why they might prefer to opt out. I know the risk is not zero, but it is very minimal. And if you are not used to / comfortable with having something inserted into your vagina, it's not unreasonable to not want your first experience of it to be a nurse inserting a spatula. Sometimes people are virgins later in life, or indeed all their life.

Depends on your issues really - I have vaginismus and am also quite 'small' down there (never had kids), so need a smaller speculum. On one occasion when I was struggling a doctor used a sort of brush-type thing (I think) which was much easier, although I don't know if it's only doctors that can use those as I've never known a nurse use one. Also on discovery that I have a tilted uterus I was told to make fists underneath myself which I gather makes things more accessible, so to speak.

Sounds like they've been a bit dismissive of your pain saying to just take paracetamol, that's not great. Unfortunately, after some really bad experiences with smears in the past, I've found some people do tend not to get that for some of us smears are very painful (I suppose if a female clinician doesn't struggle with her own smears she might think those of us who report pain are making a fuss over nothing), and I think we do need to push for what we need. Hope you have better experiences in the future.

That's interesting! I didn't know that. Thank you for sharing. It looks like it is actually already available. My surgery certainly hasn't made me aware of that option though, as presumably self testing won't help them with achieving targets / making money.

Thanks for this. Mine is also small and had awful experiences of them faffing around with different sizes and different positions! Just so uncomfortable and then the scrapping feeling makes me feel so nauseous and panicky. So I think it’s a physical thing but also some sensory/anxiety. I do it because in the grand scheme of things I can get through it and I’d rather not have cancer! But I ca understand that for people it will be even worse.

thanks for your reply

I only found out last night because of this discussion, so many thanks to the op for starting it.
It was announced last year and the report I found last night said Jan 2026. This one says early 2026

news.cancerresearchuk.org/2025/06/24/at-home-hpv-testing-cervical-screening-programme/

It's also an option to insert your own speculum. There are blog posts by women who have done that.
There has also been a small study where this was routinely offered.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16164528/

Agree. Cancer doesn’t care about your risk factors. It can come to anyone and once it does you’ll be kicking yourself for not having a very simple preventative test.

I have PTSD from CSA and so I especially don’t enjoy having it done. However I’m still not stupid enough to turn one down.

But HPV caused cancer does care about risk, since it's primarily sexually transmitted. The screening is for HPV and if that is absent, the smear test is binned.

They get paid for carrying out a procedure. Would it surprise you to know that many procedures are paid for separately from their basic budget. That’s how GP provision works.
No private organisation provides a service without a charge. The NHS is the same. GP practices have very different demographics so certain services are funded separately to reflect the level of provision. If every practice received the same funding for cervical screening regardless of whether they provide it or not then it would be deemed mismanagement of funds.

Not controversial. Decisions people make over their own bodies are their business.