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What is the significance of uterine cells detected in a pap smear?
An_193839 posted:
Can someone please tell me what it means when the doctor sees uterine cells on a pap smear?
georgiagail responded:
The significance of this would depend on whether the woman is pre or post menopausal.

The attached will help explain this:

proberts0702 responded:
She's post menopausal.
Jane Harrison Hohner, RN, RNP replied to proberts0702's response:
Dear proberts (and Anon): In short, if cells from the lining of the uterus ("endometrial cells") are found on the PAP of a postmenopausal women that can suggest one of three things:

1. The lining of the uterus is so overly thickened that bits of it are shedding. A too thick lining can be treated with synthetic progesterone.

2. Abnormal, rapidly growing cancerous or precancerous lesion growing in isolation inside the uterus.

3. A problem with the canal that connects the inside of the uterus to the vagina. This "endocervical canal" is lined with the same type of tissue as the inside of the uterus.

My best GUESS is that the GYN will want to do an endometrial biopsy of the lining of the uterus, along with an endocervical curettage (scraping a sample of tissue from the cervical canal). An ultrasound may be done as well to measure the thickness of the lining of the uterus. Anon, if you are postmenopausal this type of PAP finding needs to be evaluated.


PS If the postmenopausal women is using hormone therapy, the lining of the uterus may be less stable thus creating minute amounts of hormonal breakthrough bleeding.

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