Anal Cancer: Are you at Risk?

Erin N. Marcus, MD, MPH, FACP

Share this page

A Pap smear that many men should get, too

One recent morning, a group of men and women sat in a clinic reception room, waiting for their Pap smear appointments.

You read that correctly. The Pap smear—a screening test for cervical cancer and longtime fixture of the women’s health exam—is now used to detect and prevent cancer of the anus in both men and women. Experts believe that routine Pap testing could play an important role in curbing a doubling of new anal cancer cases that have occurred over the past three decades. Read on in Positively Aware