3 ms·
> Human papilloma virus causes cervical cancer (which is why women get annual "Pap smears") If you meant to say the test was called after the Pap-illoma virus,
by huhtenberg 15y ago
> Human papilloma virus causes cervical cancer (which is why women get annual "Pap smears")
If you meant to say the test was called after the Pap-illoma virus, then it's not correct. Pap test checks for abnormally shaped cervix liner cells rather than a virus. And it is named "Pap" after a person who invented it, not a virus.
- Mz 15y agoNo, I didn't mean to specifically say that. I think I was vaguely aware it was named after a person. Is anything in that line factually incorrect? (EDIT: I am guessing you are reading it that way due to the quotation marks? If you check my comment history, I think you will find I am prone to overuse of quotations. I stick them in to make it clearer it is a phrase and those words belong together. I often feel English doesn't do a good job of making such distinctions. I suspect this has something to do with growing up in a bilingual household. In German, lots of words get run together into a megaword, which makes it clear it's basically a phrase. We do not have a similar mechanism in English. I often feel that leaves too much room for misinterpretation. So it's an odd personal quirk. Sorry for the confusion.) Thanks.