text: why do you need a doctor to do the pap-smear for you? why can't you do it yourself? all it is is they swab cells from inside your püssy and take it to a lab and make sure you don't have cancer.  so why do you need a doctor to swab you?  why can't you just reach in and swab yourself?  and then give it to them to take to the lab? first of all, do you have a speculum to properly open the walls of your vagina to see what you're doing??? mrs. shantee is quite correct. a swab is taken from the cervix and those cells are sent to a lab for analizing. it's called a 'smear'. furthermore, a proper pelvic examination doesn't just include a pap test. palpating the ovaries must be done as well to determine if there is any abnormal swelling. that is why the dr. has one finger in the vagina, and pushed on your tummy with the other hand. the ovaries can be examined that way. also, when a speculum is inserted into the vagina, the dr. can make a visual inspection of the vaginal walls, checking for any possible abnormalities. to to a pap test on oneself...is only having a fool for a patient.