abnormal pap

iVillage Member
Registered: 10-03-2004
abnormal pap
2
Tue, 01-25-2005 - 4:48pm

i got my pap smear results back from my ob and she said it came back abnormal. She told me not to lose any sleep over it because it was one step above normal. She made me an appointment with gyn oncology to have an colopscopy done. It is a little camera/miscroscope that looks at the cervix. the doctor said something about it having to do with hpv and when i read it online it is genital warts!!! I am very nervous even though she told me not to be. here i am 18 weeks pregnant with the possibility of having cancerous cells in my cervix. Has anyone gone through a similar situation??

iVillage Member
Registered: 12-30-2003
In reply to: wampt85
Tue, 01-25-2005 - 6:20pm

Hi wampt85, welcome!

You doctor is right, you should try to relax. If caught early most causes of abnormal paps can be easily and successfully treated. There are many types of HPV and just because you have an abnormal smear doesn’t necessarily mean you will have genital warts. Here's a good article on cervical dysplasia: http://www.ivillagehealth.com/library/onemed/content/0,,241012_245583,00.html And another on colposcopy http://familydoctor.org/082.xml Your doctor will need to know that you are pregnant as that will determine how s/he performs the procedure. Let us know how your colposcopy goes, ok?

Good luck and hugs,

      Jill

    

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-27-2003
In reply to: wampt85
Wed, 01-26-2005 - 11:48am

I would like to share my 2 cents...

I just went through a similar situation (just post pregnancy however). I had the abnormal pap due to HPV (many strains do not appear as visible warts). I went through the colposcopy with biopsy which had a good report. However because my pap was still abnormal and the two tests did not agree, they recommended I have a cryo procedure.

Well, I did my homework and found out that...
1)the newer paps reveal things like HPV (older test type did not)
2) there are two schools of thought on how to proceed. The first being "procedure/treatment" oriented, the other being more wholistic...doing follow-ups, looking at whole body health (immune system), and then monitoring the irregularities by having follow-up paps about every 3-4 months (then doing procedures if things get worse.)
3) Except in very rare types of cervical dysplasia, it gets worse very slowly...over months, even years.
4) many if not most cases of mild cervical dysplasia go away on their own over time(think it was 70%)

So, I ended up letting my doctor know that I was not interested in doing the more aggressive procedure plan...I requested I be allowed to work on my overall health and immune system, and be retested in a few months...she agreed to allow me to do this. Well, I just completed my second follow-up that came back normal...after doing NOTHING but waiting!

My 2 cents are that if I was you I would do my homework...and potentially wait. Would I have the colposcopy...maybe. Being pregnant I would want to know ALL the details of the risk vs reward. They do "mess with" you cervix which causes some irritation...after having it done recently, I would be concerned about doing it while pregnant as a low level screening...I would much rather go back in 2-3 months and re-pap before deciding.

Well, I am not a doctor, just a lady who likes to be aware and in charge of my sexual health. Hope this helped a bit. I do agree with your doctor, "don't loose any sleep over it"...but I know I did, so that is easier said than done!!

Sandy