Pap Smear Test: What to Expect, How Often, and Whether It Hurts

A Pap smear is one of the few cancer screenings that can stop a cancer before it starts. It finds changes in the cells of the cervix years before they could turn into cancer, while they’re still easy to treat. It’s also a test many people put off, usually because they don’t know what to expect. Here’s exactly what happens, how to prepare, how often you need one, and what happens after.

What a Pap smear test checks for

“A Pap smear is a test to screen for cervical cancer,” in MedlinePlus’s words. “During a Pap smear, your health care provider collects cells from your cervix and sends them to a lab” (MedlinePlus). The lab looks for cells that have started to change.

The reason it matters is HPV, the human papillomavirus. The National Cancer Institute explains that long-lasting infection with high-risk types of HPV “causes virtually all cervical cancers” (NCI); the CDC puts it at more than 9 of every 10 cases (CDC). That’s why screening now uses two tests, sometimes together:

• The Pap test looks at the cervical cells themselves for changes.
• The HPV test looks for the high-risk types of the virus that can cause those changes.

The good news: “Most HPV infections go away on their own within a year or two as the immune system controls the infection. These short-term infections do not cause cancer” (NCI).

What happens during the test

The whole thing is usually part of a pelvic exam, “which takes only a few minutes” (NCI); the Office on Women’s Health puts the test itself at about 5 minutes (OWH):

1. You’re asked to undress from the waist down (or completely) and lie on an exam table with your knees bent and your heels in footrests called stirrups.
2. Your provider gently inserts a plastic or metal instrument called a speculum into the vagina, which widens it so the cervix can be seen.
3. With a small, soft brush or swab, your provider collects cells from the cervix, and the sample goes to a lab.

According to MedlinePlus, “there are no known risks to having a Pap smear” (MedlinePlus).

Does a Pap smear hurt?

Usually not. MedlinePlus describes it this way: placing the speculum “may cause a feeling of cramping or pressure,” and collecting the cells “doesn’t usually hurt.” You may feel some mild discomfort during the test and have some very light bleeding afterward (MedlinePlus).

The Office on Women’s Health adds that “Some women find Pap and HPV tests uncomfortable, but the tests should not be painful,” and offers practical tips: if you’ve never had sex, or something placed in the vagina has hurt before, you can ask for a smaller speculum, and emptying your bladder or taking an over-the-counter pain reliever about an hour before can help (OWH). If you’re nervous, say so before you start.

How to prepare

For two days before your test, MedlinePlus advises that you should not:

• Use tampons
• Use birth control foam, jelly or cream
• Use other creams or medicines in your vagina
• Douche
• Have vaginal sex

(MedlinePlus). The CDC gives the same two-day window and adds a practical note: “If you had sex before the test, go to the appointment as planned and let the doctor know” (CDC).

About your period: you can usually still be tested. The Office on Women’s Health says you can get a Pap or HPV test during your period, though it’s better to schedule it for a time when you don’t expect your period, and “better to get a Pap test at any time than to miss your appointment because of your period.” Depending on how heavy your flow is, your period may affect the results (OWH). MedlinePlus’s Pap page suggests waiting until about five days after your period ends. If your period is due around your appointment, call and ask.

How often you need a Pap smear

For people at average risk, the current U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommendation (USPSTF), as summarized by the National Cancer Institute (NCI):

Age	What’s recommended
Under 21	No screening, even if you’re sexually active
21 to 29	A Pap test every 3 years
30 to 65	An HPV test every 5 years, an HPV and Pap test together every 5 years, or a Pap test every 3 years
Over 65	Most people with a history of normal results can stop; ask your provider

These intervals are for people at average risk. If you’ve had abnormal results before, or have a weakened immune system, your provider may recommend a different schedule, and the CDC notes that yearly screening isn’t recommended for people at average risk (CDC). Changes are coming, too: in January 2026, the Health Resources and Services Administration updated its women’s preventive guidelines to call an HPV test every 5 years the preferred method from 30 to 65, and to let women at average risk collect their own sample, changes that take effect for most health plans in 2027 (HRSA).

How long Pap smear results take

“Cervical screening test results usually come back from the lab in about 1–3 weeks” (NCI), and the CDC notes it can take as long as three weeks (CDC). “Most of the time, test results are normal,” the Office on Women’s Health notes, and “If you do not get the results of your Pap and HPV tests 3 weeks after the test, call your doctor’s office to get the results” (OWH). The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality gives the same advice in general: don’t assume that no news is good news (AHRQ).

If your result is abnormal, it usually isn’t cancer: “Most of the time, abnormal results do not mean you have cervical cancer. Minor changes in the cells usually go back to normal on their own” (MedlinePlus). Our guide to abnormal Pap smear results explains what each result means and what happens next.

After the test: spotting, and when to call

Most people go straight back to their day. “You may feel some mild discomfort during a Pap smear and have some very light bleeding afterward, but there are no known risks to having a Pap smear,” says MedlinePlus (MedlinePlus). During pregnancy the cervix bleeds more easily, so spotting after a Pap or pelvic exam isn’t unusual, but any bleeding in pregnancy is worth a call to your provider (ACOG). Call the office if the bleeding is more than light spotting, or comes with pain or fever.

A Pap test also has limits worth knowing. It isn’t a test for sexually transmitted infections (OWH), and it doesn’t screen for ovarian cancer (CDC) or for uterine, vaginal or vulvar cancer. If you have symptoms such as bleeding between periods or after sex, don’t wait for your next Pap: see a provider.

Pap smears at Ambert

Pap smears and well-woman exams are done at the Miami Lakes office, with your results explained in English or Spanish. See women’s health and Pap smears for the full service and what insurance covers; federal guidelines call for at least one preventive well-woman visit a year, and most plans cover it without a copay when you see an in-network provider. If you’re due for other screenings too, an annual physical can cover them in the same season.

Call the office to book, and ask about timing if your period is due. Pap smears are done at both the Miami Lakes and Kendall offices. New patients can start with the new patient guide.