Popularly, it is most often construed to mean the life expectancy at birth for a given human population, which is the same as the expected age at death. However, technically life expectancy means the expected number of years remaining to live, and it can be calculated for any age.
Try not to worry if you've been referred for a colposcopy. It's very unlikely you have cancer and any abnormal cells won't get worse while you're waiting for your appointment. What happens during a colposcopy. A colposcopy is usually carried out in a hospital clinic. It takes about 15-20 minutes and you can go home the same day. During the procedure:
Your doctor should be able to tell you if anything abnormal was seen during this test. A smooth, pink surface of the cervix is normal. If the colposcopy or biopsy does not show why the Pap smear was abnormal, your health care provider may suggest that you have a cold knife cone biopsy. A specialist called a pathologist will examine the tissue sample from the cervical biopsy and send a report to your doctor. Biopsy results most often take 1 - 2 weeks. A normal result means there is no cancer and no abnormal changes were seen.