What is a smear test?

As part of the NHS Cervical Screening Programme, every woman in the UK, who is registered with a GP, will be invited for cervical screenings. How often you are invited to a smear test will depend on your age:

Regularly attending cervical screening tests will mean that any abnormal changes in the cells of the cervix will be detected at an early stage, and this would stop cancer from developing. However cervical tests are voluntary and it is your decision whether you attend them or not.

If you’re registered to a GP in the UK, you will be invited by letter to attend a cervical screen test. Once you have the letter you’ll need to book an appointment for the test at your GP surgery. Make sure to book your appointment on a day when you won't be on your period. If you don't have periods you can be screened at any time that is convenient to you.

If you’re overdue a test and haven’t had a letter you’ll need to contact your GP surgery, they may have incorrect contact details for you.

Your appointment should take no more than 20 minutes and the screening itself takes around five minutes to complete. Firstly you’ll be asked to undress from the waist down and lie on your back on a couch or bed. Once you’re comfortable the doctor or nurse will ask you to either bend your legs up or place your ankles together and your knees apart, these positions allow them to easily insert the speculum into your vagina. The speculum holds the walls of the vagina open so your cervix can be seen the healthcare practitioner may use lubricant as well to make insertion easier. A specially designed brush is then used to collect some cells from the surface of your cervix. Once the sample has been collected it is sent off for analysis at a laboratory and you’ll receive the test results.

The results of your test will be sent to you in the post, this can take up to two weeks. The results also depend upon whether the test for HPV was carried out first and whether the cells were tested for other abnormalities.

There are three results options for the test:

If your results are low grade this means that although abnormal cell changes are present, they are almost normal and may disappear without treatment. You’ll be invited back for routine screenings like normal, and will need to attend the next screening you are invited to.

If your results are high-grade dyskaryosis, you’ll be offered a colposcopy to examine the cervix in more depth and check for any other changes in the cervical cells. This doesn’t mean that you have cervical cancer or will develop cancer; it means that you have abnormal cells that need more investigation.

No, a cervical screening test detects abnormal changes to the cells within your cervix. It can’t detect pregnancy, however if you are pregnant smear tests are not recommended.

Feeling pain during a cervical screening test is very rare, however many women will feel slight discomfort. Remember that the more relaxed you are the less the muscles in your vagina will contract and the easier the test will be. Many women may also feel embarrassed during a smear test, as the procedure means you will need to be naked from the waist down, unless you are wearing a loose skirt. There is no need to feel anxious or embarrassed as is the test is private and the nurse is there to help you, reassure you and more importantly not to judge you.

If you can, it’s best to book an appointment during the middle of your menstrual cycle, this tends to be two weeks from the start of your last period. Having a test at this time can ensure a better sample of cells is collected and you also won’t be on your period during the smear test.