By Amelia Robinson, Staff Writer 6:43 PM Thursday, January 27, 2011

Dr. William Rettig knows getting a pap smear is no picnic.

“the only place women like going to less is the dentist, but it is probably a toss up,” said the doctor of obstetrics and gynecology at Lifestages-Samaritan Center for Women.

The screening may be uncomfortable to talk about and experience, but it saves lives, Rettig said.

“It’s proven to reduce cancer,” he said. “Over the last 30 years the incidences of cervical cancer have gone down 50 percent.”

Cervical cancer forms in tissues of the cervix, the organ connecting the uterus and vagina. most cervical cancers are caused by the sexually transmitted infection human papillomavirus (HPV).

“eighty percent of men and women by the time they are in their 20s or 30s are exposed to the HPV virus,” Rettig said, noting that most exposed to the virus will not develop cancer.

“Anyone who is exposed to a male is potentially high risk. this is a virus you could have been exposed to years ago.”

The truth about pap smears

Surgeon Lynne Eaton, a Miami Valley Hospital gynecologic oncologist, calls the pap smear one of the most effective screenings for any cancer, but it is made to seem scary.

“Young girls hear this horror story about what a pap smear is,” she said. “a pap smear can help diagnose cervical cancer and most women don’t know what a pap smear is or that they need a pap smear.”

During the procedure, a doctor uses a plastic or metal instrument called a speculum to widen the vagina for examination of the cervix. Cells and mucus are collected, usually by a swab, for study.

Routine pap smears are recommended by age 21 or within three years of first having sex.

Eaton will take part in a free public presentation called “the Truths and Myths about Female Cancers” at 6 p.m. Feb. 3 at Miami Valley Hospital South, 2400 Miami Valley Drive, Centerville.

Hard stats

Worldwide cervical cancer remains the second most common cancer in women, but its incidents have decreased dramatically in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The agency contributes the decline to the pap smear, which detects cervical pre-cancer before it turns into cancer.

In 2010 there were about 12,200 new cervical cancer cases in the United States and about 4,210 deaths, according to the National Cancer Institute. Cervical cancer kills about 160 Ohioans annually, according to the Ohio Department of Health.

In an average year, 487 Ohio women develop invasive cervical cancer.

Age does matter

Eaton said many women are in the advance stages of the disease by the time they seek treatment.

“They ignored symptoms, didn’t know they had to get it (a pap smear) or had limited resources,” Eaton said. “People don’t understand their bodies. They don’t know where their cervix is.”

Many women mistakenly abandon routine pap smears after passing their childbearing years, she said.

About half the women who develop cervical cancer are ages 35-55, according to the Ohio Department of Health. twenty percent are diagnosed at 65 and older.

“the majority of women I see haven’t had a pap smear in 10 years,” Eaton said. “if a woman gets a pap smear routinely, her risk of developing cervical cancer is reduced dramatically.”

Both Eaton and Rettig recommend the cervical cancer vaccine for females ages 11-26.

“it reduces your risk by about 70 percent,” Rettig said, noting that it vaccinates against the two types of HPV that cause most cervical cancers.

Rettig said he understands why pap smears are overlooked, but the test is important.

“I think we are all human. none of us like going to the doctor,” he said.

Contact this reporter at .