Lisa's story

Lisa Maher, 30, from Glasgow, was diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2011 after attending a routine cervical screening appointment.

The first time the married mother-of-two was invited for cervical screening she didn’t think twice and attended.  

Lisa explains: “My first smear test detected abnormal cells and I was asked to come back for another smear six months later. I was relieved when those results came back as normal.”

Three years later when Lisa was invited for her next routine smear, cell changes were detected once more and she was referred to the colposcopy clinic to remove them. The sample was tested and Lisa was diagnosed with cervical cancer.

Lisa continues: “The news was a big shock. I didn’t think I would be diagnosed with cancer, especially at such a young age.”

Ten days later, Lisa went back for treatment to remove the remaining cancerous cells and the doctors were confident that they had removed all of the cancer. Lisa went for a smear test every six months for five years after her diagnosis to monitor for any changes, all of which came back normal.

Lisa has gone on to have two children and credits cervical screening for catching her cancer early.

Lisa said: “I was so lucky that the cancer was caught early and I was able to have treatment to remove the cancerous cells. I was trying for a baby when I was diagnosed and it’s thanks to cervical screening and early detection that I've been able to go on and have two beautiful children. If I hadn’t gone for my smear test when I did, my story could’ve been very different.

“I would encourage all eligible women to attend cervical screening when they are called. It only takes a few minutes and it provides peace of mind.”