I went for a PAP smear - it's all changed!

[Mushroomwithaview]

I do live under a rock so probably everyone except me already knew about this. I didn't have to do the frog-legs / speculum / 3rd party cervix poke while concentrating on the ceiling tiles! Just pop into the toilet and self-administer a vaginal swab. All done!

Am a big fan of the change.

It must be being rolled out or trialled by area.
My last one which was fairly recent was the old fashioned way which I hate as I have to do gymnastics on the bed to even get to my cervix but it reassures me that my cervix gets looked at and assessed by the nurse so I hope they continue for me.

For those of you who aren't comfortable with the old way and therefore don't have your appointments, you can get the self administered HPV tests privately online - superdrug do them as mentioned upthread.

I had a smear early Nov and it was the usual way (Hampshire)

I agree with a PP, sounds great, but no one checking cervix health?

I had my last old fashioned one a few months ago.

But mostly I'm thrilled that my DD will never need to have one.

I don't mind the old school method but appreciate not everyone is there same. A year ago the nurse doing it could visually see there was something wrong with my cervix and I feel a lot better about someone looking at it than just doing a swab.

My smear last year was administered by the nurse, but all the smears I’ve had have only been testing for HPV and not looking for anything else - that part isn’t new.

My last one was about three years ago and the nurse told me it would be the last time it would be done that way. She said by my next one it would be self administered just testing for HPV and I'm sure she also said they would be sent out for use at home. She was very hopeful about it all as more women would come forward for their test. I'm in West Sussex.

I had one recently the old-fashioned way- though the cells were only tested for HPV. I prefer that method really because the nurse actually had a look at the cervix and said ‘everything looks normal’. I know a nurse can’t make any diagnosis from looking at the cervix (except perhaps for polyps as mentioned above) but as she gets to see a lot of them in her job, it’s an extra layer of reassurance when she says it looks healthy.

Oh wow. At my last one (last year I think) it was the same as before but she explained that they just test for HPV and the sample is only then tested if you have HPV.

I am not that impressed TBH, as I've never had HPV at any time but have had laser excision of CIN 1 and 2 before, and have had several "abnormal - need to have another smear in 12 months" results in the past.

I'm not quite clear if they are just cost cutting or whether there is so little risk of developing cancer without HPV present that the above procedures were no longer necessary.

I know. This really worries me. I'd much rather they checked for actual cancerous/pre-cancerous cells as before.

I’m really wary of this, it seems like a cost cutting exercise. I had cervical cancer 12 years ago, and I was HPV negative. It does happen! I’d be dead if this was the process back then and I worry about how many women will slip through the net.

They really need to educate women about the other signs - spotting between periods, pain during/after sex and period pain with no bleeding. If you’re having these symptoms get yourselves to your GP and ask for a colposcopy referral because a ‘smear’ won’t necessarily pick it up if all they’re doing is testing for HPV, not cervical changes.

My last one was this summer and it was the same it’s always been.

my gyno between my legs, speculum, scraping etc.

I am not certain I’d be comfortable with the DIY approach. But it’s a good option for women who would decline otherwise!

I’d rather be given the option so that I can carry on having smears the traditional way, with the reassurance that my cervix is also being looked at by a nurse who sees thousands of them a year, but women who don’t currently attend for theirs can self administer a swab and it’s better than the no check they’re currently having.

Oh wow, really? When did this change? I was delighted when they moved to plastic speculums and I didn't have to endure a ford fiesta being crashed into my vagina. This is so great!

I had a smear just before Christmas (lots of fun, I thought I'd been booked in for an asthma check so was quite surprised to be told to take my trousers off!) and it was done the old fashioned way. May be a slow roll out?

Not around here they're not, and thank goodness - sooo many things can be picked up by someone looking at your cervix. A self-swab could miss plenty.

I know two people this happened to too, one being a close family member.

I myself was told I have unusual cells that they want to keep an eye on at smears (I get spotting and went for investigation), but since they now only check those who are HPV positive they won’t look at my cells for changes any more, despite them knowing my history. I’d rather have smears the usual way so at least someone is looking and there’s a chance of them noticing something worrying.

I had a smear two weeks ago taken in the traditional way. Results were only for HPV though which I was surprised at as I'm in my 50s and expected a cancer check. I'm pretty sure the nurse didn't look at my cervix though.

I went yesterday and it was 100% frogs legs and speculum activity.

@Ferraria the nurse would have looked at your cervix when she took the smear. It’s not possible to do it without looking.

@MumblesParty thank you. You'd think at my age I'd know that by now! She was chatting non stop about her imminent retirement so she's probably seen a fair few cervixes and didn't feel the need to comment.

Pros and cons to this. Ideally women should be offered a choice between a smear and just the HPV test, which would ensure that women who avoid smears out of fear or embarrassment can at least have a self administered HPV check while women who would like the full shebang can have that.

I had mine not too long ago and was told it is firstly tested for HPV and then if positive the rest of the sample is used to test further. Negative and it is discarded. So it looks like currently some areas are collecting more than they need to avoid second visits for more testing till they get a handle on volumes etc

I hope they are going to continue to offer the nurse option, I've never had any problems with it and would prefer the extra reassurance of a professional observation. It's also a good moment to ask questions if there is anything else minor that might be concerning you. It's good that the home test is now available for those who would otherwise not do it though.

Definitely will get numbers up, pain is a big reason not to go