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Making sense of your Pap &
HPV Test Result FAQs

Q. When my Pap test is not normal that mean I have cancer or a precancerous condition?Q. What are the common terms used to describe simple infections with HPV and why do they need colposcopy?Q. What does it mean when my Pap test saysAtypical Squamous CellsUndetermined Significance (ASCUS)?Q. What should I do if my Pap test is ASCUS and my HPV test is negative?Q. What should I do if my Pap test is ASCUS and my HPV test is positive?Q. What should I do if my Pap test is LSIL?Q. What does it mean when my Pap test saysAtypical Squamous Cells: Cannot Exclude High-Grade SIL (ASC-H)?Q. What does it mean when my Pap test saysHigh-Grade Squamous Intraepithelial Lesion (HSIL)?Q. What does it mean when my Pap test saysAtypical Glandular Cells?Q. What does it mean when my Pap test is negative but my HPV test is positive?Q. What should I do if my Pap test is negative but my HPV test is positive?

When my Pap test is not normal, does that mean I have cancer or a precancerous condition?

The vast majority of Pap tests that are not normal are not associated with cancer. Most Pap tests that are not normal are caused by infection with human papillomavirus (HPV) and have little or no risk to become cancer. A true precancer is a lesion or growth that if left untreated may turn into cancer, usually over many years. Many different terms have been used over the years to describe true precancers. These include: high grade cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (HGCIN), CIN-2, CIN-3, high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (HSIL), moderate dysplasia, severe dysplasia and carcinoma-in-situ. These lesions are almost all easily treatable so that cancer can be prevented