Women can get Pap test every two years

DALLAS, June 23 (UPI) -- Women used to schedule a Pap smear annually but U.S. gynecologists now say a test every two years for women in their 20s, every three years after age 30, is OK.

Dr. Claudia Werner, an obstetrics and gynecology expert at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, says Pap tests and pelvic exams provide a screening for cervical cancer and can help detect abnormalities in the reproductive system.

Although the Pap test interval can be safely extended, an annual well-woman exam addresses other issues and still is recommended, Werner says.

"Pap tests every two years are as sensitive as annual Paps for detecting precancers and early cancers of the cervix," Werner says in a statement.

Another guideline change from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists is that healthy women younger than age 21 no longer need Pap screening -- even if they are sexually active, Werner says.

"It is extremely rare for younger women to have cervical cancer," Werner says, "and a higher number of abnormal results on their Pap tests lead to unnecessary evaluations and treatments."