When your first cervical smear test result is sent to the NCSP-Register, the National Cervical Screening Programme will send you a letter with that result. 

With subsequent tests, although your smear taker will receive your test result within about three weeks of sending your smear to the laboratory, you won't hear anything unless you have asked your smear taker to contact you even if your results are normal.  If your results are abnormal, you will be contacted by your smear taker.  If you are concerned, contact your smear taker.

What your results mean

The result of your cervical smear test tells you if the cells taken from the surface of your cervix are normal or have changed in some way. If some cells have changed, your result will indicate how they have changed. For more information about results, see the pamphlet 'Understanding Cervical Smear Test Results'.

Normal result

• About nine out of ten cervical smears are normal.
• If you had a normal result, you have a very low risk of developing cancer. Usually your smear taker will recommend that you have your next cervical smear test in three years time. Sometimes you will be advised to have one sooner.

Unsatisfactory result

• If you are told your cervical smear was unsatisfactory, this means the test could not be read at the laboratory. Either there were not enough cells on the slide, or many were damaged or hidden, for example, by blood or mucous.
• You will be advised to have another cervical smear in one to three months.

Inflammation or infection

• Sometimes the laboratory will report that an inflammation or infection is present. These changes are not linked to cancer. You will need to discuss the result with your smear taker. Often no treatment is needed.

Abnormal result

• An abnormal cervical smear result means some of the cells on the cervix differed in some way from normal cervical cells. 
• An abnormal result hardly ever means cancer.