What should be the frequency of exams (pap smears and mamograms) for women over !
Question: This is a question from my wife. She has been with a family doctor for many years. This doctor recomended a yearly pap and mamogram. Recently we switched to am HMO, and they say that a woman over 50 with no history of irregular paps or mamograms and no family history of cancer should have paps every 2-3 years and mamograms every 3-5 years. Both groups, the family doctor and the HMO, are trying to maximize their profits. But, what are the facts, what does the data suggest?
Answers: This is a question from my wife. She has been with a family doctor for many years. This doctor recomended a yearly pap and mamogram. Recently we switched to am HMO, and they say that a woman over 50 with no history of irregular paps or mamograms and no family history of cancer should have paps every 2-3 years and mamograms every 3-5 years. Both groups, the family doctor and the HMO, are trying to maximize their profits. But, what are the facts, what does the data suggest?
I don't know about the mammogram.
I do know my experience with getting yearly pap smears.
I have recently heard the recommendation that a woman who has had regular paps and is in a stable relationship can get a pap smear every 3 years.
I totally disagree.
I meet the recommendations above - but it would have been disastrous if I had waited 3 years between pap smears. One year my pap was normal. The next year, I was in the last stage of dysplasia (carcinoma in situ.) The cancer cells were just on the surface - they had not spread down into the tissue yet.
If 3 years had gone by, I would have had full blown cancer by the time it was found. I was not a typical candidate to get cervical cancer. I had been married for many years and had always had normal pap smears.
I go every year without fail.
it is recommended once a year for women over 50...monthly women should do BSE (breast self exam).
The pap smear sounds reasonable.