Is cervical cancer screening painful?

Cervical cancer screening is somewhat painful, but this pain is completely manageable, especially during the biopsy, because a speculum is inserted into the vagina for examination, which may cause some discomfort and pain to women. In addition, a cervical scrape requires extracting a thin film from the surface of the cervix for examination, so it is normal for women to experience pain. For cervical screening examinations, women generally do not need to use painkillers to relieve pain.

In fact, there is not only one screening method for cervical cancer; there are several ways to screen. It usually doesn't hurt. Only one type of examination, biopsy, may cause some pain, while the others will only cause some discomfort, after all, it is an examination performed by inserting something into the vagina.

The most common method for cervical cancer screening is the cervical smear test. The doctor will use a wooden scraper to gently scrape the woman's cervix in a circle, that is, a 360-degree circle. The force is very light, so women will not feel any pain at all, only a little foreign body sensation. After scraping a circle, take it out and smear it on a glass slide, and then send it to the laboratory for testing.

The second is the most advanced method for cervical cancer screening, which is the TCT test. This is a procedure that uses a small brush to take cells from a woman's cervical canal, then places these cells in a preservation solution and then tests them. So this method actually feels the same as the previous one, and it doesn’t hurt either.

The third type is the HPV test, which involves a blood draw and is detected through blood tests. So, for those who find injections painful, it will be a little painful.

The fourth type is colposcopy, which involves using a cotton swab to wipe the surface of the woman's cervix and secretions in the vagina, and then using a colposcope to observe and examine. So the process is actually not painful.

These are the methods for detecting cervical cancer. Basically it won’t hurt. A little discomfort is normal. Before doing these examinations, female friends must remember that no matter which method of examination is used, it must be done after menstruation, and they cannot have sexual intercourse within one day before the examination, cannot flush the vagina or put suppositories in the vagina within two days, and must not do some examinations for vaginal rash. These will affect the results of the inspection. Another point is that if there is inflammation, you cannot do a cervical cancer test. They will all have an impact. Therefore, it is necessary to wait until the inflammation is healed before doing relevant examinations for cervical cancer.