INSIDE INFORMATION FOR WOMEN by Dr. Yvonne S. Thornton

...now browsing by tag

 
 

There’s much more to an annual pelvic exam than a Pap smear

Tuesday, October 25th, 2011

You might have read that the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force now recommends that most women have Pap smears just once every three years instead of once per year.

Does that mean you can skip the OB-GYN appointment until 2014?

No, no, no, and no.

You must have a pelvic exam every year. Pelvic examinations save lives. A Pap smear, which can help identify cervical cancer, is just one part of that examination. Your OB-GYN does much more during your annual. She also looks for any evidence of ovarian cancer, vaginal cancer, myoma (fibroids) and other abnormalities of the reproductive tract.

And while it’s true that cervical cancer is typically a slow-growing cancer that takes an average 10 years to spread, sometimes these cancers “don’t read the books” and spread in a shorter period of time.

In my new health book, INSIDE INFORMATION FOR WOMEN, I tell you in greater detail what to expect when you have a gynecologic examination.

Don’t take risks with your health. Your “annual” is called that for a reason. Make sure you see your OB-GYN for your pelvic examination every year.

– Yvonne S. Thornton, MD, MPH