PAP SMEAR

also called Papanicolaou's stain laboratory method of staining smears of various body secretions from the respiratory, digestive, or genitourinary tract, for the examination of cast-off body cells, to detect the presence of cancer. The Pap smear is notably reliable in detecting the early stages of cancer in the uterine cervix. For such a Pap smear, two specimens are usually taken for laboratory staining and examination, one consisting of vaginal secretions obtained by suction (aspiration) or with a spatula, and the other of scrapings of the surface of the cervix, at the site where cancerous growth frequently originates. While the cervical scrapings provide material for highly accurate interpretations, the vaginal smear gives reliable results as well and may reveal malignant cells not only from the cervix but also from the endometrium (the mucous coat of the uterus) and the ovaries.