Women’s Health Just Got Easier - Cervical Cancer Screening on Your Terms

Women's health just got easier

Cervical cancer is not always easy to bring up, but at Partner Medical, we believe in having open, straightforward conversations that put your health and comfort first. So let’s break it down together.

Cervical Cancer: What Is It?

Cervical cancer is the third most common gynecologic cancer diagnosis and cause of death from gynecologic cancers in the U.S. It usually develops slowly over time, and in nearly all cases, it’s caused by a persistent infection with human papillomavirus (HPV)—a super common virus that most of us are exposed to at some point in our lives.

The good news? When caught early, cervical cancer is highly treatable. And that’s where screening comes in.

How Is Cervical Cancer Diagnosed?

If a screening test comes back positive, the next step is a biopsy of the cervix—a small tissue sample taken to look for abnormal cells. This is typically done by a gynecologist, but the screening part is something your primary care team—like us at Partner Medical—can handle for you.

When and How Should You Get Screened?

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) has clear guidelines:

• Start screening at age 21, and keep it up until age 65.

• You can do a Pap smear every 3 years, which checks for abnormal cells on the cervix.

• Or, if you prefer, an HPV test every 5 years, which checks for the virus that can cause those changes.

  
  

Both are great options—it’s just a matter of what works best for you.

A Simpler Way to Screen

Here’s the part we’re really excited about.

In May 2024, the FDA approved a self-swab for cervical cancer screening. That means you can now collect the sample yourself, making the steps to get screened far easier.

This still needs to be done with a clinician’s order and under medical supervision, but this change is a huge step forward in making cervical cancer screening more comfortable and accessible.