Hi, I’m sorry to post this here but I’ve given up on the admin staff at my GP.
I had a smear test in August 2018 where I had low grade changes but given the HPV test came back negative I was told to come back in 3 years. I was 31 then, 32 now.
Prior to this my GP had ordered a colposcopy due to post coital bleeding. I wasn’t worried as I’ve had it for years but I agreed to go.
Colposcopy took place about 6 weeks ago. The nurse said the bleeding was due to soft skin on the outside of the cervix and therefore nothing to worry about.
However she also spotted something unusual and took a biopsy.
I got my result back saying I have CIN2 and to go for another colposcopy in 6 months.
I’m confused as my smear was OK just over a year ago and I’m HPV negative. Been with the same partner for over 10 years if that’s relevant?
Can anyone shed some light on this? I don’t understand how it’s possible.
Thanks x
One possibility is that you are still HPV negative which means that the CIN2 is overwhelmingly likely to go back to normal on its own.
Another possibility is that you have become positive since your smear. This does not mean that you have caught a new infection but is more likely that you have had HPV in the past, your immune system had suppressed it so it was inactive when you had your HPV test and therefore undetectable and for some reason it has become active again causing the cell changes.
We have a lot to learn about HPV. Currently there is no way to tell the difference between never infected, infected and then cleared and infected and suppressed.
Whilst the virus is suppressed, it cannot cause cell changes and it cannot be passed on to anyone else.
I tested negative for HPV in 2013, normal smear in 2016 and CIN 3 in 2019. I have been with the same partner for 30 years and am as sure as anyone can be about another person that i don't need to be hitting him over the head with a frying pan!
Thank you! That is very helpful. All I got was a one liner from the hospital so I was a bit lost and researching online wasn't very helpful.
In other countries people seem to get treatment, or at least the option of treatment for CIN2 so I'm not sure why that isn't happening here. A call from the GP or a nurse would have been nice!
I'm in Ireland where our screening service has been extremely flawed and there's been huge controversy and they still can't manage to communicate with us. Bizarre.
Thanks again for taking the time to respond.
There is no clear protocol for the treatment of CIN2 like there is for CIN1 and CIN3. It tends to be up to individual hospitals and gynaecologists and what they prefer, taking into account how long the patient has had it, age of patient, general health and future fertility concerns.
The latest research seems to be showing evidence in favour of more conservative watch and wait rather than going straight for treatment particularly in younger women who have more efficient immune systems and for whom future fertility is more likely to be relevant.
