Janet – Interview 06
Janet was diagnosed with CIN3 in 1996, aged 37. She was pregnant at the time but had to have a hysterectomy. It was a traumatic experience, and Janet is keen to raise awareness of cervical screening and CIN 3.
In 1995, when Janet was working as a senior nurse, she started having heavy periods. She suspected something was wrong and, though she had not had a smear test in over ten years, she made an appointment to have one at her local surgery. Shortly afterwards, she received a phone call from her GP, who told her that she would need to have further tests.
Janet was 37 at the time and did not yet know that she was actually pregnant. After tests, she was diagnosed with CIN3 and told that she would need a hysterectomy. This came as a huge shock and was an extremely difficult time. Janet would have liked to have been given more information about saving her eggs so that she could have had children in the future, but this was not discussed with her. She felt rushed into having surgery and the whole experience was very traumatic. She had not had any children and would have liked to have had a family. She said, it’s a very traumatising experience, and I think that you come to terms with it but you never quite get over it.;
After the hysterectomy, Janet became depressed and found the loss of her fertility difficult to come to terms with, as well as having an early menopause. She had 3-monthly follow-up appointments at first, followed by 6-monthly and then annual appointments. She advises women to attend for cervical screening and to ask for a second opinion if they are unsure about having the treatment that they have been offered.