Cancer worries

[sunflower185]

Hi there, looking for any advice from ladies who might have similar concerns. I have been having some abdominal cramps which I heard is a symptom of cervical cancer. I had a smear test done privately in nov 2025 and it was normal. The NHS then invited me for a smear test in February 2026 but I did not go as I’d had the private one. I am now kicking myself for not doing the NHS one too, as I had the opportunity to be ‘double checked’ and did not take it. Anyone have experience doing private screening and know if it is as good as NHS one? I am now worried something might have been missed . I have 2 young children so any time I have a health concern now I get really worried xx

can you not still go for the nhs one?

if it was with the gp just make an appointment and go. lots of people take a while to pluck up the courage to go.

i have ibs and the cramps from that are similar to period cramps. maybe consider what you have eaten when you get cramps for up to two days afterwards? keep a food diary and see if it’s bowel related.

I don't know if this is true for the private scan you paid for, but on the nhs one as a money saving exercise they take your smear sample but the first check they run is to look for if you have the HPV (Human papillomavirus) - which to be fair more than half of sexually active individuals have - but if you don't have the virus then your smear sample is thrown away unlooked at. Of course not many women can be confident of being HPV free without being tested - it would have to be the case that you were the first ever sexual partner for each male partner you've ever had and that none of them were unfaithful - or for younger women - if you restrict your male sexual partners to those born after 2007 (currently age 19) they will have been immunised against HPV age 12. Not useful info for those of us who are several years beyond the age at which one might be attractive to a 19 year old! I am not recommending that older women predate upon male teenagers as a cancer avoidance strategy. But my point is it's much easier and cheaper to get an HPV check than a smear. If you know you are HPV negative there's no point getting an NHS cervical smear.

HPV isn't the direct cause of cervical cancer, about 3% of cervical cancers are in women who are HPV negative.

Cervical cancer is not anywhere near remotely a likely explanation for abdominal pain. Worrying about cancer in response to abdominal pain is a symptom of a health anxiety disorder that needs counselling. There are dozens of more likely causes.

Yes I was just wondering if necessary given I had the clear result from private test in November 2025

You can still have the NHS one. They will chase you forever until you book it. It very much depends on what was involved in your private smear test. Did it actually look at your cells under the microscope? The NHS one tests for high risk HPV. If you don’t know if you have any of the high risk HPV strains, it’s worth getting tested. If all clear, your chance of developing cancer (assuming no new sexual partners) is very small.

A smear is a screening test not a way of diagnosing someone with symptoms so if you have unexplained symptoms you should go for a proper examination with your GP. And as others have said the smear only looks for HPV and doesn't look at the cells in the cervix so would be unlikely to pick anything up.

As above, a smear test is designed for screening asymptomatic patients. You should see your GP if you are having symptoms as other investigations such as ultrasound or colposcopy might be more appropriate.

Abdominal cramps can be a symptom of many benign conditions and if you aren’t having any other symptoms (eg post-coital bleeding, abnormal discharge, intermenstrual bleeding) and had a normal smear less than a year ago, it’s very unlikely that cervical cancer is the cause.