Long story short, ever since I had the girls I have gone in for my annual check-up & my pap smear comes back w/ abnormal cells & then my follow up which is usually a month later comes back fine. But, 3 times out of 6 years of this, I have had 2 abnormal tests in a row & they want to do a colposcopy (sp?) where they cut some of your uterine lining & test it for cancer. Has anyone had anything similar? My doctor can't give me any straight answers as to why my tests are always abnormal. I am on the pill & i did some reading & it said that can cause abnormal pap smear tests, but my doctor said no. Who is right? I really would like some answers....I'm getting frustrated because I really don't want to have another colposcopy done because it really hurts. I just need some advice...........................

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AKA Mommyof2girls

I just had a friend go through this. They redid the pap smear. The first said abnormal cells and they did another one right way. The dr. did not wait 6 months. It came back normal. Years ago there was a lot of news about the pap smears being read wrong when they were right. It was an error with the person reading the test. I wish I had more advice for you. Good luck.

I have been on the pill on and off for 12 years and have never had an abnormal. I would listen to you DR or get a second opinion if you feel you need to. I would do everything to check to make sure that you don't have cancer and make sure everythink is 100% healthy. HTH

I had an abnormal pap last year and had a colposcopy. Really they just take a closer look at the abnormal cells, and then take some tissue for a biopsy. It did hurt a bit when they took the tissue sample, and I spotted a little bit for a few days.
The terms my gyno used when I asked her what they were looking for were dysplasia(simply abnormal cells) or dysplasia (pre-cancerous cells). Turned out that I had metaplasia, which is a result of having HPV (human papilloma virus). The virus might just clear up on its own but I have to go every 6 months just to keep an eye on it.
If a person has dysplasia, then they do a procedure to remove the pre-cancerous cells and then follow up a few months later to make sure they are still gone.

OK, now that I've typed all that, I'm rereading your original post & realize that it sounds like you've already had a colposcopy, so I'm sorry if I'm telling you stuff you already know.

I would see about a second opinion; it sounds like your dr isn't digging too deeply to find out why you keep having abnormal paps. Try not to stress too much about it (easy for me to say, I know) because chances are it's nothing serious. You are wise to want to get some hard answers, though, and if you feel your doctor isn't working hard enough to get those answers for you, go elsewhere.
Let us know how it turns out; I'll be thinking of you &sending healthy vibes your way.

Thanks ladies! Your kind words helped. DH suggested I go elsewhere too, as I'm not getting any concrete answers. I may do that. I'm not stressing too much because I think abnormal paps are "normal" for me. I just wish I didn't have to go thru this every year. Plus I hate the colposcopys. Not fun at all. I'll have to keep you updated. Thanks again. It's nice to have such a great support network!

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AKA Mommyof2girls

I did a search for this topic because I am in a similar situation and was wondering if you got any answers. For the past 2 years, I have normal, then abnormal pap smears. I have had 2 colposcopies and have to have paps every 3 months for a year til they have been normal for a year. Well the past 2 years it never fails...when I am supposed to go back to just annually I have an abnormal, have to have a colposcopy (which shows nothing is wrong) and go back every 3 months. I am sick of it. They have checked me for everything disease wise and I am clean. My dr. seems to think I might be allergic to some laundry detergent or soap or toilet paper. Really they don't know and I want answers.

I went through this after DD#1. I had the colposcopy and then had the LEEP procedure done to remover the cancerous cells. The LEEP is much worse than the colposcopy. But they came back with "clear margins" and everything has been fine since.

My doctor was never able to give me an exact reason as to why. I do know that it is common. I have 2 close friends that have had the same thing. A girl I work with has also been through this and several of hers came back abnormal. To my knowledge, she is still going through this.

I work in a cyto lab, where they do the pap testing. I can tell u that an abnormal can be caused by poor technique. also the type of testing matters. right now the best testing is a thin prep. If a tech can't read pap well, they err on the side of saftey and have you retest. what was your actual result? there are many degrees. I would also ask for a copy of your reports. I agree you need a new doc. I get calls from docs all the time asking us to explain the results. what? they should know. We transfer them to our Pathologist. HTH

allgirls

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allgirls, mom to 3 girls