Age 26 -Post Colposcopy

This is the cervix of a 26 year old woman who has never been pregnant. She has irregular cycles, varying from 9- 23 days long, with menstruation lasting 2.5 days.  She has been using Nexplanon (a contraceptive implant) for 6 years.  

She has had several abnormal pap smears (the first in 2017) from high risk HPV types  – though not HPV strains 16 or 18 which are the types most commonly associated with cancer.  She was diagnosed with CIN2 dysplasia in 2018, which indicates a moderate chance the cells will become cancerous. The first photo is the view during the colposcopy and biopsy. Lugol’s iodine was applied to the cervix, which stains normal cervical tissue dark brown and allows the doctor to see where the abnormal cells are.  Her doctor took a cell biopsy, but the results came back inconclusive, so they never removed the dysplasia surgically.

At her one year follow-up appointment, her cervix was highly inflamed and several biopsies were taken, again presumed high risk CIN3. Her biopsy results came back normal and no dysplasia was found, although the pathologists note the inflammation is severe, but have given no diagnosis. Her pap smear also came back normal/no dysplasia.