Colposcopy
Posted , 2 users are following.
I had a colposcopy performed today - it is right/ normal that when I go to the toilet I feel like my cervix is there, like it's almost hanging out!! Is it swollen??
0 likes, 3 replies
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Notes on Colposcopy
eliz52 liscur1
Posted
You can feel uncomfortable and even feel pain after a colposcopy, biopsies are usually taken during this procedure.
The thing that makes me furious is that MOST of these procedures are unnecessary, caused because we pap test women under 30 and do not offer HPV primary or HPV self-testing to women aged 30+
MOST women are HPV- and cannot benefit from pap testing, colposcopy, biopsies or over-treatment. HPV+ women aged 30 to 60 should be the ONLY women offered a 5 yearly pap test, this is the new Dutch evidence backed program, it will save more lives concentrating on those actually at risk from this always-rare cancer and just as importantly, takes most women out of pap testing and harms way.
It's disgraceful that so many women endure these procedures, when that could be so easily avoided, here in Australia 77% of women who screen will have a colposcopy (and usually a biopsy as well) at some stage, while the lifetime risk of cervical cancer is 0.65%, LESS than 1%
That's HUGE over-investiagtion and over-treatment, great for medical profits, but a lousy deal for women.
Hope you're feeling more comfortable soon, my younger sister was also, very sore after her unnecessary colposcopy/biopsy and had a lot of pain and discomfort after an unnecessary cone biopsy - she now knows she's HPV- and cannot benefit from pap testing. (as a result of her own research)
liscur1 eliz52
Posted
I'm 34 and had an abnormal smear with high grade readings.
I don't know what a Pap test is??
I slept better last night but am yet to get up to see if it feels like the "swelling" has gone down!
I had the LLETZ done yesterday the actual procedure didn't hurt as much as the doctor rummaging about with the clamp - I swear he was digging for gold!!
eliz52 liscur1
Posted
Lots of women have LLETZ, this procedure should be limited to women aged 30 to 60 who test HPV+ and ALSO, produce an abnormal smear, CIN 2 or CIN 3. An "abnormal" smear is not enough to warrant "treatment", the "abnormal" smear can be caused by many things like inflammation (tampons, condoms etc.) trauma (childbirth) infection (often transient and harmless) hormonal changes (menopause, pregnancy) or the smear picking up perfectly normal changes in young women - a maturing cervix. (this is why women under 30 are not pap tested in an evidence backed program)
The Q is: Are the women with "abnormal" smear tests also, HPV+?
If they're HPV- then they're having an unnecessary procedure. HPV- women (that's 95% of women aged 30 to 60) are NOT at risk of cervical cancer and therefore cannot benefit from smear tests. You must be HPV+ to develop cervical cancer, but note, almost all HPV clears naturally within a year or so, it's only in rare cases that HPV+ women go on to develop actual cancer.
We could dramatically reduce harm caused by excess biopsies and over-treatment if we adopted primary HPV and HPV self testing - you can then take the 95% of women aged 30 to 60 who test HPV- out of the smear/pap testing programs.
These procedures are unpleasant and can be painful and damaging, they should ONLY be done when absolutely necessary.
Hope you feel better soon.