Ask a Doc

You ask a question that is on the mind of a lot of women upon hearing that they have unexpected results from their Pap test.  In most women infected with HPV, the cells in the cervix return to normal after the body's immune system has eliminated the HPV infection of forced it into latency without the woman ever having any signs or symptoms of the HPV.  However, some HPV infections do not fo away and may remian present in the cervical cells for year, without causing any abnormalities most of the time. Most HPV infections clear up within 2 years, some sooner, some longer. Long-standing infection can lead to changes in the cells that can progress to cancer if not treated. If is these cell changes taht a Pap test can detect. Make sure that you follow up with your doctor to get the treatment recommended so taht your pre-cancer cells don't turn into cancer.  Your actions can prevent cervical cancer.