Go to Content Go to Navigation Go to Navigation Go to Site Search Homepage

Cervical cancer symptoms are hard to notice, but tests can find abnormal cells before they become cancer. Regular check-ups are the best way to avoid cervical cancer.

What are the symptoms of cervical cancer?

Most people who have a high-risk type of HPV that can lead to cervical cancer will never show any symptoms until it’s already very dangerous. That’s why regular checkups are so important. In many cases, cervical cancer can be avoided by finding abnormal cell changes and treating them BEFORE they become cancer.

Once cervical cancer develops, the first signs include:

  • abnormal bleeding, spotting, or discharge

  • periods that are heavier than usual

  • bleeding after sex

Signs of advanced cervical cancer may include pelvic pain, problems peeing, and swollen legs. If the cancer has spread to your nearby organs, it can affect how those organs work too. For example, a tumor might press on your bladder and make it feel like you have to pee more often.

Some symptoms of cervical cancer can also be caused by other conditions, like yeast infections. If you have any of these symptoms, visit your doctor, nurse, or your nearest Planned Parenthood health center to find out what's going on.

How do you get screened for cervical cancer?

Cervical cancer screening is used to find infections or abnormal cells in your cervix that could lead to cancer. Pap tests and HPV tests are two kinds of cervical cancer screening. Both are simple and fast.

An HPV test finds high-risk types of HPV that can possibly lead to cancer. You may only get an HPV test, or you may have an HPV and a Pap test together (called co-testing). In some places where HPV tests are not as available, you may only get a Pap test.

A Pap test, sometimes called a Pap smear, finds abnormal cells caused by HPV — it doesn't directly test for cancer or HPV. If a Pap test finds abnormal cells on your cervix, your doctor can monitor or treat them so they don’t turn into something more serious. You may have an HPV and a Pap test together (called co-testing). You may also get a Pap test as a follow-up after a positive HPV test result. 

Wellness exams usually include a Pap test and/or HPV test as needed. Most people only need testing every 5 years, since cancer takes a very long time to develop. Your doctor or nurse will let you know how often you should be tested.

How is cervical cancer diagnosed?

If you have an abnormal Pap test or positive HPV test result, your doctor or nurse may want to do more tests or treatments, like:

  • Colposcopy — a procedure to look more closely at the cervix to see if there are precancerous cells. If they do a colposcopy, they might also do a biopsy — a procedure to remove a small piece of tissue from your cervix. Your doctor will send the tissue to a lab to test it for signs of cervical cancer.

  • Cryotherapy — a treatment to freeze and remove precancerous cells from the cervix.

  • LEEP or Loop Electrosurgical Excision Procedure — a treatment to remove precancerous cells from the cervix with an electrical current.

Was this page helpful?
You’re the best! Thanks for your feedback.
Thanks for your feedback.

We and our third partners use cookies and other tools to collect, store, monitor, and analyze information about your interaction with our site to improve performance, analyze your use of our sites and assist in our marketing efforts. You may opt out of the use of these cookies and other tools at any time by visiting Cookie Settings. By clicking “Allow All Cookies” you consent to our collection and use of such data, and our Terms of Use. For more information, see our Privacy Notice.

Cookie Settings

We, and our third-party partners, use cookies, pixels, and other tracking technologies to collect, store, monitor, and process certain information about you when you access and use our services, read our emails, or otherwise engage with us. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences, or your device. We use that information to make the site work, analyze performance and traffic on our website, to provide a more personalized web experience, and assist in our marketing efforts. We also share information with our social media, advertising, and analytics partners. You can change your default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of required cookies when utilizing our site; this includes necessary cookies that help our site to function (such as remembering your cookie preference settings). For more information, please see our Privacy Notice.

Marketing

On

We use online advertising to promote our mission and help constituents find our services. Marketing pixels help us measure the success of our campaigns.

User Feedback and Session Replay

On

We use qualitative data from LogRocket, UserZoom, Hotjar and AB Tasty to learn about your user experience and improve our products and services. LogRocket allows us to view session replays.