What is it used for?A Pap smear is a way to detect abnormal cervical cells before they become cancer. Sometimes the cells collected from a Pap smear are also checked for HPV, a virus that can cause cell changes that may lead to cancer. Pap smears, along with HPV testing, are considered cervical cancer screening tests. Cervical cancer screening has been shown to greatly reduce the number of new cervical cancer cases and deaths from the disease.
