What happens if abnormal cells come back

Living with cervical cancer. Practice Nurses and GPs. Information for teachers. Increasing cervical screening attendance. Cervical Screening Awards. Who we are. Skip to main content. Google Tag Manager. Home Information Cell changes abnormal cells If cell changes come back.

Title If cell changes abnormal cells come back. Cell changes coming back can be worrying, but try to remember: it does not mean you will develop cervical cancer they can be managed with monitoring or treatment.

It is common to feel this way and we, along with your healthcare team, will do everything we can to support you: Our Helpline volunteers all have personal experience, so call them on and talk with someone who gets it.

Your colposcopist will only offer this if: they think there is a high risk the cell changes may develop into cervical cancer in future it is not possible to safely do another LLETZ. Side effects and possible risks of treatment Before offering you further treatment, your colposcopist will think about any possible risks of multiple treatments. Stop smoking If you smoke, you may want to try to stop. Smoking makes your immune system weaker, which may mean: it is less likely to get rid of high-risk HPV cell changes infected with HPV are more likely to progress to cancer cells.

Support our work We rely on donations to fund our support services for people affected by cell changes and cervical cancer. This is the most common treatment for abnormal cervical cells. Your colposcopist uses a thin wire loop to remove the transformation zone of the cervix.

The wire has an electrical current running through it, which cuts the tissue and seals the wound at the same time. LLETZ is an outpatient treatment and takes up to 15 minutes. You usually have it under local anaesthetic. At the colposcopy clinic, your nurse asks you to undress from the waist down and then to lie on your back on the examination couch.

They give you a sheet to cover yourself. Your legs are supported by 2 leg rests. Your colposcopist gently puts a medical instrument called a speculum into your vagina to hold it open like when you have a cervical screening test. They look through the colposcope to examine your cervix. They inject some local anaesthetic into your cervix.

This might sting for a short time. The local anaesthetic numbs the area. Your colposcopist can then remove the area of tissue with the abnormal cells. This is not painful but you may feel some pressure. You should bring a sanitary towel with you to the hospital. You'll need one after the treatment as there might be some bleeding.

You shouldn't use tampons or have sex during this time to reduce your risk of infection. NETZ stands for needle excision of the transformation zone. You may be more likely to have this treatment if the abnormal cells are inside the passage that leads from the opening of the cervix to the womb cervical canal.

As with LLETZ, your doctor removes the whole area where cells can become abnormal the transformation zone. It is called a cone biopsy because the doctor removes a cone shaped wedge of tissue from the cervix.

In some cases, if you are past your menopause or have had all the children you want to have, your doctor may suggest removing the whole of your womb includes the cervix. In most cases, the benefit of treatment will outweigh these risks.

Talk to a doctor or nurse if you have any concerns or would like to know more about the potential risks of treatment. Page last reviewed: 30 December Next review due: 30 December When treatment is carried out Treatment to remove abnormal cells from your cervix can be done at the same time as a colposcopy if it's obvious that some of the cells in your cervix are abnormal.

But sometimes treatment cannot be done on the same day. Depending on your age, you'll be invited for a cervical screening appointment in 3 or 5 years. Abnormal result About 6 in every 10 people have abnormal cells in their cervix — known as cervical intra-epithelial neoplasia CIN or cervical glandular intra-epithelial neoplasia CGIN.

This is not cancer, but there's a risk it could turn into cancer if untreated. The different types of abnormal biopsy result and what they mean are as follows: CIN 1 — it's unlikely the cells will become cancerous and they may go away on their own; no treatment is needed and you'll be invited for a cervical screening test in 12 months to check they've gone CIN 2 — there's a moderate chance the cells will become cancerous and treatment to remove them is usually recommended CIN 3 — there's a high chance the cells will become cancerous and treatment to remove them is recommended CGIN — there's a high chance the cells will become cancerous and treatment to remove them is recommended Read more about treatments for abnormal cells from the cervix.