Hi All,
I've had a couple of letters through the post recently about my first cervical smear (I turn 25 in the autumn). The think is I'm still a virgin and when I've gone for examinations before they've refused to do vaginal examinations. Would they even do a smear test if I went? (I also had the hpv vaccination). Thanks!
Hiya,
I have been informed byDoctors in the past that you can still be a virgin and would still require a Smear test as the recommended age is 25 it is a few months early but I would recommend going to the Doctors to get a smear test done. As being a virgin does not matter even if you have had the HPV vaccination as I said the recommended age is 25. I would go and get it done.
Hope this helps you that is my personal opinion I am not forcing you at all.
Kj330
If you've never been sexually active, you cannot benefit from smear tests, but you can be harmed by false positives and over-treatment. HPV is a sexually transmitted infection, no HPV means you're not at risk of cervical cancer. I'll send you a private message with a link to a site that will give you a lot of accurate information.
Hiya HPV is not just an STI it is also associated with having abnormal Smear tests you may wish to look at this link. http://www.nhs.uk/chq/Pages/2611.aspx
Beauty,Yes, HPV can cause abnormal smear tests, but it's a sexually transmitted infection. Almost all HPV clears naturally in a year or two, but in rare cases it can persist eventually leading to cervical cancer. Lots of things can cause an abnormal smear test, inflammation, trauma, hormonal changes etc.
The new Dutch program is 5 HPV primary tests or HPV self testing at ages 30,35,40,50 and 60 and a 5 yearly smear test will only be offered to the roughly 5% who are HPV+ and at risk.
almost all women are HPV- and cannot benefit from smear tests. This program is likely to save more lives and takes most women out of smear tesing seeing over- treatment rates plummet.
Hi. There is a great deal of new evidence to suggest that virgins do not need smear tests. Cervical cancer has now been shown to be caused by the hpv virus which you will not have. Please do not submit to this cruel, vile unecessary test without investigating further. I suggest you check out a website called .
forwomenseyesonly you will find lots of evidence there. If at such a young age you have the test it may lead to a lot of very unecessary overtesting because changes to your vaginal cell show up at suspicious before 30. I was 50 begore i found out smear testing for me had been the wrong thing to do. I have been narried for nearly thirty years and both of us had been virgins but not one doctor said you may not need it. They were just using me to hit targets. I am now left traumatized by thr whole process and have recently contacted rape crisis for the pstd i gave been suffering. My aim is to save you and all the ypung women out there ftom having this horrible procedure done to them which may lead to further harm.
GP's get paid incentive payments to persuade you to have a smear test, so they get paid to pester you.
This is completely wrong, because it is entirely your choice whether or not to have a smear test. Your doctor will get a small payment if s/he can get 40% to agree to a smear and a larger incentive payment if s/he can persuade 80% of women to have a smear, so some women are being put under great pressure to have a smear, when they are at no risk of cervical cancer whatsoever. It is more to get their incentive payments than of any benefit to your health.
Your risk of cervical cancer is non- existent if you have been vaccinated and not had sexual intercourse.
My personal opinion is that they want women to still get smears because they want to monitor how effective the vaccine has been. We are all guinea pigs in this experiment, and if you are not happy being a guinea pig, stand your ground and tell your GP you are making an informed decision, and do not wish to test until your circumstances change.
First let me say that the hpv vac doesn't cover all strains of the virus. It does cover the more common strains some of which are cancer causing and some that aren't but there are some out there that can cause cancer that it doesn't cover that is why the shot is so contraversial. If your start date for your first smear is 25 where you live, it is based on age and the fact that you most likely are sexually active by then and also that most young women who are sexually active before age 25 will have positive results both with HPV and most likely your smear results anyway and the body is young and the immune system will handle it. But there are very rare types of cervical cancers that can affect young women that have nothing to do with viruses but those are extremely rare, ex. Jane Goody. I think it's safe to say they'll do a smear for you.
Not all cancer causing strains of the HPV virus are protected by the vaccination unfortunately and even if you've never had intercourse, the virus is acquired by a skin to skin contact. That is why Lesbians can get the virus which is also responsible for not only cervical but vaginal, vulvular and anal cancers. I do agree that smears and paps have been over prescribed in the past and can lead to a lot of false positives but they're still a base source of investigation.
Actually Jade Goody had an even rarer form of cc, adenocarcinoma, usually missed by pap testing, but it's linked to HPV.
The even rarer types of cc, like small cell carcinoma, are also, usually missed by pap testing.
So HPV primary testing and HPV self testing from age 30 is much more likely to catch some of these cancers.
Countries that follow the evidence and make an effort to protect women, exclude them from pap testing and HPV testing until they're 30. Sadly, no country in the world has shown a benefit in terms of incidence or mortality from cc in women under 30, despite cervical screening. Sadly, these very rare cases occur whether you screen or not. Young women tend to get false negatives, which may falsely reassure and lead to a delay seeing a doctor for symptoms. (poorer prognosis) Most of these cancers are diagnosed after the woman becomes symptomatic. (even if she has smears)
But pap testing those under 30, and especially under 25, leads to huge numbers of false positives that can lead to potentially damaging "treatments". Damage to the cervix can lead to premature babies, the need for c-sections and cervical cerclage, miscarriages etc.
The Dutch and Finns have aways protected their young women and excluded them from testing until they're 30. HPV testing should not be offered before age 30 either as about 40% og those under 30 would test HPV+, transient and harmless infections that clear within a year or so, at age 30 about 5% will be HPV+, these are the women who should be offered a pap test.
Following the evidence and targeting those at risk is the best way, IMO, to tackle this fairly rare cancer.
The Dutch and Finns have properly advised their young women too, see a doctor with persistent and unusual symptoms. We tell our young women to have a pap test - falsely reassuring them/misleading them.
Here is Australia we test from about 18 (some even younger) so young women really suffer under our program, it's a highly lucrative source of income though for vested interests, so we'll do HPV testing from age 25 under our new program. You only need to do basic research to find HPV testing is not a good idea before age 30.
Vested interests win again...
So almost all cervical cancer needs HPV infection as a necessary first step, there is some doubt about VERY rare small cell carcinoma...some believe it's linked to HPV, others are not sure...but it seems clear these cancers are also, missed by pap testing. These women are usually diagnosed after they develop symptoms. Some of these women have been screened and received a false negative result.
I read somewhere that Goody had the even rarer form of adeno, neuroedocrine small cell which is not linked with HPV per some research.
No, it was an adenocarcinoma
Dr Margaret McCartney, Scottish GP, was highly critical of the system using Jade Goody's case to promote pap testing because her form of cancer is usually missed by pap tests/smear tests. So again, giving women misinformation.
We make better decisions when we work with real information, but so much of what we get is spin and marketing, not real information. Some of it is bad medical advice, like our doctors promoting 26 pap tests, serious over-screening, great for them, a lousy deal for women.
I'll link one of McCartney's comments, it might have to go to the moderators first, but will appear shortly.
Personally, I'm convinced all cervical cancer is linked to HPV, and that's why the Dutch won't bother pap testing those women who are HPV-
IF some of the rarer forms of cc ARE related to HPV, pap testing misses them anyway, so I think the best advice is to know our own bodies and to seek medical advice if we develop persistent and unusual symptoms.
(and of course, offer women evidence based screening, respecting our right to choose...as if that will ever happen in the States or Australia!)
I hate the way the symptom-free female body has been demonized and medicalized, like it's out to kill us and needs constant medical surveillance. I reject that idea totally...I feel like I've spent my entire adult life protecting my body from medical meddling.
Nice chatting to you...
Something I read regarding Jade was that her first positive pap came around the age of sixteen she claimed was before she was even sexually active so this would coincide with that rare type of adenocarcinoma even though why she had a pap in the first place if she wasn't sexually active is a question. She had cells removed twice and then stopped heeding the continued bad paps and treatment. There are two major types of cc, squamous and adeno, as we know, then a combo of each called adenosquamous and then there are a few rare forms of adeno, clear cell, lymphoma of the cervix, neuroendocrine small and large cell, some sarcomas and even melanoma. The only ones affected by HPV are the first three, the common ones. The clear cell is the result of possible the DES exposure and the others aren't quite clear on what causes them. Could be a rare familial or envirnomental link. But I do know that children born of HPV positive mothers will carry the virus too so it would do no good to get the vaccine. I'm a strong believer that viruses are responsible for much of our health problems, even obesity. Thanks for the intelligent discussion!