Make Pap Tests Part of your Routine

It is important for all women to make Pap tests, along with pelvic exams, a part of their routine health care. You need to have a Pap test if you are over 18 years old. If you are under 18 years old and are or have been sexually active, you also need a Pap test. There is no age limit for the Pap test. Even women who have gone through menopause (the change of life, or when a woman's periods stop) need to get Pap tests.

Women who are living with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, are more at risk for developing cancer of the cervix and other cervical diseases. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that HIV positive women have an initial Pap test, and then another one 6 months later. If both of these Pap tests show no cancer or other problems, then a Pap test can be done only once a year.

Women who have had a hysterectomy (surgery to remove the uterus) should talk with their health care provider about whether they need to continue having routine Pap tests. If the hysterectomy was done because a woman had cancer or a precancerous condition, the end of the vagina still needs to be tested for abnormal changes. Women who have had both their uterus and cervix removed may not need routine Pap tests. Women who have had only the uterus removed (and still have their cervix) need regular Pap tests. It is important for all women who have had a hysterectomy to have regular pelvic exams.

Many health care providers tell women to get a Pap test every year. But, your health care provider may recommend a Pap test every 1 to 3 years after you have had 3 normal Pap tests for 3 years in a row. Talk with your health care provider about what is best for you.