What is HPV?

Question

I am a 21 year old female and my bf is 29 years old and we had notice 3 wort looking things on the pubic area and we just thought they were nothing and he just went to his family dr and the dr check them out and said he has HPV and now when i look up the word HPV its says genital warts come up and i ask the dr if it was an STD and the dr said no and when i talk to my mother later that day she said only women can get HPV.Im really confused as to what HPV is, is it warts, is it just something you can get, should i be careful to us having sex anymore? and the dr kept telling me its nothing major, well to me if HPV is warts that pretty major to me, someone please help me to understand what HPV is and how he would have gotten it thank you

Answer 1

HPV - human papilloma virus also known as genital warts. Yes, it is an STD and yes, since it's incurable, it's a big deal. Both men and women can have genital warts.

I find it hard to believe a doctor said it wasn't an STD and that it was no big deal! It is a big deal, here's why: HPV is the major risk for cervical cancer and there is no cure. The good news is, some cases are latent, dormant, subclinical and/or clear up on their own. You may still have the virus though although it is inactive or even undetectable. More good news: yearly pap smears, medications and LEEP have greatly reduced the incidence/severity of cervical cancer. Also, a vaccine to prevent several types of HPV has been developed, get it for you and your daughters when it's available:

http://www.ppatp.org/hpv2.htm

Good general info here:
http://sexuality.about.com/od/stds/p/HPV.htm

More technical info here:
http://www.ppatp.org/hpv2.htm

Answer 2

It stands for Human Papilloma Virus. There are a variety of strains of HPV. Some strains cause genital warts, some strains cause cervical cancer and some strains don't really do anything at all. Men and women can both have HPV. Many people are carriers and don't even know it, especially if no outward signs such as warts ever appear. HPV is most commonly transmitted through sex, although I've read research suggesting you don't have to have sex to contract it. There is no cure for HPV at this time. Be sure to get a pap smear every year so your ob/gyn can keep an eye on this and make sure it doesn't turn into cervical cancer. But don't worry and don't feel bad. Many, many, many people have HPV...more than you'll ever even know!

Answer 3

It is human papiloma virus, or genital warts., yes it is an STD. Yes you can have it but not ever know it because you can not have the symptoms (warts) Your mom probably thinks that only women get them because it is much more serious in women. There are about 6 kinds of HPV which can cause cervical cancer and sterility in women. You should be checked, even if you used a condom. HPV can actually be transmitted by touching the wart even a little. Or if he touched it and then touched you you could get it. On the bright side there are over 50 kinds of HPV so there is no guarantee that you will get cervical cancer.

Answer 4

hpv human papilloma virus is an std both men and women can get it only thing is men ususually dont have symptoms ...some women get warts others get dysplacia meaning abnormal cells in the cervix which can later lead to cervical cancer,,,condoms do not protect against hpv you can get it just by rubbing against someone.. be careful and it is a virus that can never go away just like herpes. the doctor said its nothiong major because hpv is considered the common cold amongts all stds .you will not imagine how many people have different strands of hpv they will never know and will keep passing it on to others

Answer 5

OMFG!!! GET A NEW DOCTOR!!! HPV in women can be deadly!! It can cause ovarian cancer. I'm shocked your doctor said it was nothing major.

12 years ago when I found out I was pregnant, I also found out I contracted HPV from my boyfriend. The doc told me that they would have to do a colposcopy and if there were ANY pre-cancerous cells, he would have to perform an abortion AND hysterectomy because the warts were on my cervix!!!

Luckily there were no cancerous cells and the outbreak cleared up on its own and prior to my daughter's birth. I've not had an outbreak since then, but there's a greater risk of ending up with ovarian cancer due to HPV.

Answer 6

HPV doesn't always show symptoms. Sometimes it clears and you never knew you had it other times you can get certin cancers or warts. Men often times will never have any symptoms. Its still ok to have sex. Ive had it for over a year now. Ive never had a symptom or anything to show. Nothing has happend. You just HAVE to get checked ach year to make sure you dont get cervical cancer. Some strands get that. Others might get warts. It depends on the strand you have.

Answer 7

Human papilloma virus. There are two types..low risk and high risk. LOw risk causes gential warts and the virus can clear from body b/t18 months to 2 years. Not all infected persons will have visilble warts and its not easy to test males for the virus b/c a wart has to be present for that. Women are usullay tested thru pap tests. High risk causes cancer and is more severe..this means there is abnormal precancerous or cancerous cells caused by the high risk virus. The low risk is more common thatn you know and its probable that if you've had even one unprotected experience u have been exposed to HPV.

Answer 8

Human Pampiloma Virus. It is a STD. It is the #1 cause of Cervical cancer, but if you have frequent pap tests you should be ok. It is not necessarily anything major. Alot of times it will go away on it's own. Men can and will get it, but there is no way to detect it and will have no effect on the man except he will be a carrier. A condom is always important, but will not necessarily protect against hpv. It's more of a skin disease, not a blood type like HIV. Go to webmd.com they will have a lotr of info

Answer 9

Human Papillomavirus, more commonly known as HPV, is a viral infection spread through skin to skin sexual contact. HPV is a group of over 100 different viruses, with at least 30 strains known to cause different types of cancer. There is currently no cure for HPV.

How Can You Get HPV

HPV is transmitted by skin to skin contact through vaginal, anal and oral sex with a partner who already has HPV. If infected, signs and symptoms may take weeks, months and even years to appear. Symptoms may never appear.

Answer 10

· HPV causes genital warts and abnormal cells on the cervix which can lead to cervical cancer if left untreated

· It can also cause cellular changes that can lead to vaginal, vulvar, anal, and less commonly penile and oral cancers

· Most people will get HPV at some point in their lives, and experts estimate the lifetime risk of acquiring HPV to be between 70 and 90%, depending on what you read

· Most people do not show any symptoms