Older women still getting Pap smears despite guidelines

[riky]

Older women still getting Pap smears despite guidelines

By Kathryn Doyle NEW YORK (Reuter Health) - Women who've had a hysterectomy, and most women over 65, don't need regular swabs for signs of cervical cancer - but lots of them are getting the test anyway, say U.S. researchers. Experts recommend that young women start having internal pelvic exams, including a Papanicolaou test, or "Pap smear," to check for abnormal cells on the cervix, performed by a gynecologist at age 21. The United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommends that women ages 21 to 65 without a history of cervical problems have a Pap smear every three years. Women over 65 who have had recent regular Paps with normal results, and those who have had total hysterectomies and no longer have a cervix no longer need to have the screening test, according to the government-backed panel.

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