Hello lovely ladies,
I had a recent smear come back as positive HPV and borderline changes so I then went for a colposcopy and had a punch biopsy.
I was very emotional at the time as my best friend had just passed (days before) from cervical cancer and my results were a huge shock to me having always been clear.
The nurses were lovely but I noted they didn't once actually reassure me that everything looked fine. I saw bleeding on the camera when she first looked at my cerix and then couldn't look anymore.
2 weeks later I received a letter showing CIN3- I had gone from clear, to borderline, to Cin3 in 3 years and I feel petrified.
I have many symptoms of cervical cancer and have also felt my cervix, which clearly reveals one side of my cervix is much bigger and lumpy. I'm now thinking why didn't they warn me and what else aren't they telling me?
I've found these forums incredibly helpful and have read stories of others having LEEP (I'm having mine tomorrow) and then detecting cancer. I'm at a point where I have so many symptoms I feel it's inevitable I have cancer.
I think my question here is, can they always 'see' cancer?
I want to ask them tomorrow to be brutally honest as the shock is what keeps affecting me the most.
I know the symptoms can be other things too, but with the feel of my cervix this will have to be an incredible coincidence.
Any advice will honestly help here.
I'd also like to thank all the incredible women who have shared their experiences on here-you have no idea the impact you have on us newbies.
A-M xx
Hi Amp and welcome to the group.
I’m sure it must really amplify your concerns to have seen your friend pass away from cervical cancer and made you extra anxious about everything. I cannot tell you how many women I have encountered over my years of belonging to groups like these who assume that their situation is much worse than it turns out to be.
The nurses you see are not gynaecologists, and don’t normally, in my experience, give their opinion before you have a biopsy. They simply don’t know, and no-one does, until biopsy results are back. So, it’s not a case of them keeping things from you-they just don’t know. Also, you are making assumptions about your cervix without knowing if it is in fact completely normal for your anatomy. You are assuming too that you have symptoms of cervical cancer, though there may be other explanations for them.
To answer your question, no, they can’t always see cancer, but it doesn’t mean that you have cancer. I was diagnosed right from the start with locally advanced cancer, but that is because my tumour was visible to the naked eye, and I was told I had a suspicious “lesion” by the gynaecologist.
It is a possibility that the cells removed during your LLETZ would show cancer, but it’s not a foregone conclusion at all. No-one will be able to be sure at your LLETZ whether there is cancer there or not so please don’t be surprised if they cannot tell you more at the appointment. Your punch biopsy showed precancerous cells, but the cells removed during the LLETZ will give the definitive answer-the punch biopsy only takes a tiny sample of tissue.
I hope you’ll come back and let us know how you get on, and fingers crossed that the LLETZ will remove all of the abnormal cells.
Sarah xx
Thanks Ampit would be good to hear an update. It’s always a little disappointing when ladies don’t come back with an update and we never get to find out how things went. It can also be really helpful for new ladies coming on to read posts about situations similar to themselves.
All the best for your appointment!
Sarah xx
Hi Amp
You'll be relieved to have got the procedure over and done with now, and that it’s not going to be long to wait for your results which is helpful in keeping anxiety down.
Good news that nothing sinister has been spotted at this stage, as if there is anything found it would be very early stage and very treatable. But fingers crossed it’s just the CIN3, and I’m pleased you’re feeling positive. That’s always a good way to be during all these tests and waiting.
Look forward to seeing you post very good results!
Sarah xx
