Gynecologists are Rethinking Yearly Pelvic Exams—But Black Women Should Still Get Them

Gynecologists advise women to get pap exams between three and five years after age 30, since the cervical cancer vaccine is available to women up to age 45. For most women, this is a welcome recommendation – all that poking and prodding inside your lady parts can be mentally and physically stressful. But don’t exhale just yet – in fact, alarm bells should be ringing for Black women! We are still more likely to develop cervical cancer and die from it than our white counterparts. Yes, Black women still should advocate for yearly well-women exams. Why? Because, logistically, and financially we are uniquely qualified to do so if we want to live. Our status in the systemic patriarchy leaves positions us at the very bottom of society, and exposes us to these circumstances: We are predisposed to deleterious living conditions Many Black people live in poor neighborhoods, no matter their social status. It’s no secret that poor communities are usually located in undesirable areas, like near heavy pollution. In Louisiana, the Petrochemical Corridor is home to Cancer Alley, a cluster of (predominantly poor, Black) Louisiana parishes with higher-than-average cancer diagnoses. In Anniston, Alabama, Black residents have blood concentrations of PCBs...