What do "abnormal cells" from a pap smear indicate?

What do "abnormal cells" from a pap smear indicate?

Michael Tahery (Obstetrician & Gynecologist) gives expert video advice on: What is my doctor looking for during a breast exam?; Can I do my own breast exam?; How common are abnormal pap smear results? and more...

When the Cytologist looks at these pap smears, or these cells that have been provided for him, abnormal cells don't look normal. Abnormal cells don't look like they should, like a normal cell. Now, because pap smear is a screening test, we can't always tell why they're abnormal. Sometimes if they're very abnormal and we see, let's say, cancerous legions, Cytologists will tell you this is very abnormal, be very aggressive or they'll say, "well, this is abnormal but I'm not sure why this abnormal." So then we follow that up.