Colposcopy

Your appointment will happen in the colposcopy clinic at a hospital. It usually takes between 15 and 30 minutes, 

• At the start of the appointment, your colposcopist will invite you into an examination room. 
• They will explain why you have been invited and what will happen during the appointment. You can use this time to ask any questions and ask for anything that will make the examination better for you. 
• Your colposcopist will give you a private space to undress from the waist down and ask you to lie on an examination bed. Some colposcopy clinics have an extra screen next to the bed, in case you want to watch the examination.
• Like during cervical screening (a smear test), your colposcopist will gently put a new, clean speculum into your vagina. A speculum is a plastic cylinder with a round end.  
• Your colposcopist will use a microscope with a light at the end to have a detailed look at your cervix. This is called a colposcope. The microscope stays outside your body.

Your colposcopist will usually put some liquid on your cervix. This helps show any areas where there are cell changes. 

Your colposcopist may take a sample of tissue from your cervix. This is called a punch biopsy. A biopsy only takes a small sample of tissue, so most people don’t have local anaesthetic. If you would like local anaesthetic, ask your colposcopist. 

Your colposcopist will explain the biopsy before they take it. Some people find it uncomfortable, but it should not be painful. Remember, you are in control and if it hurts, you can ask your colposcopist to stop. Your colposcopist will take between 1 to 3 biopsies to make sure they have enough tissue from different areas of the cervix. They send the sample of tissue to a laboratory for testing.  
 

Sometimes, your colposcopist can tell that cell changes need treatment during your first colposcopy appointment. This is sometimes called 'see and treat'. 

Any treatment should be explained to you before it happens and only done with your consent. You can ask as many questions as you need to before and, if you need more time to process the thought of treatment, ask to have it done at another appointment.

The most common treatment is a large loop excision of the transformation zone (LLETZ). This removes a small area of the cervix where the cell changes are. You will have a local anaesthetic before LLETZ, which numbs the area being treated.
 

Read more about treatment for cell changes

You can leave the hospital as soon as you feel ready. You can go to work or do any other activities as usual, although you may prefer to rest. 

If you had a biopsy, you may have:

• cramps, like period pains
• light bleeding (spotting)
• brownish discharge

Although this may be worrying to you remember that these effects are common and often stop after 3 to 5 days. If you have light bleeding or discharge, wait until it stops before you:

• have sex
• swim
• use tampons

If the bleeding continues for longer than a week or gets heavier, contact your colposcopist or hospital. You should also contact them if you are worried about anything else.