What Women of All Ages Need to Know About HPV Risks
The human papillomavirus, or HPV, is a sexually transmitted infection that has been a hot health topic for many years. HPV infection is so common that most sexually active men and women will get at least one type of HPV at some point in their lives.
The best thing you can do is get informed about HPV. Virtua Obstetrician and Gynecologist Jeffrey Levine, MD, shared the following to help you understand HPV and why it should stay on your radar—especially if you have sons or daughters.
What is HPV?
There are more than 150 known strains of the human papillomavirus. Of those, more than 40 genital HPVs can cause genital warts and/or cervical cancer.
Genital HPV is spread through sexual intercourse or through skin-to-skin contact, so you don't have to have intercourse to get it. Latex condoms offer some protection but don't guard completely against transmission through skin-to-skin contact.
HPV infection is the primary risk factor for cervical cancer. However, while HPV infection is very common (the Centers for Disease Control notes there are about 14 million new genital HPV infections each year in the United States), only a very small percentage of women with HPV infections develop cervical cancer.
A Pap smear at your yearly gynecological visit is the best screening test for detecting cervical changes that can lead to cervical cancer and, done regularly, the best way to prevent it.
Why are there vaccines to protect against it?
HPV vaccines work like other immunizations that guard against viral infections. Since 2016, HPV vaccines are given in a two-shot dose to girls (and boys) as young as age 9 as a way of preventing HPV long before most kids become sexually active. (The vaccine was previously given in a 3-shot series.) These vaccines guard against two high-risk strains of HPV that cause more than 70% of cervical cancer cases. HPV vaccines may also offer some protection against the HPV strains that cause genital warts.
What does an HPV diagnosis mean?
If a woman tests positive for a high-risk strain of HPV and her Pap test shows dysplasia (abnormal cells), her gynecologist likely will perform a colposcopy. During this procedure, the doctor inspects the cervix with a special scope. The doctor then takes a biopsy, or tissue sample, which is sent to a pathologist to check for cancer cells.
If the biopsy shows cervical cell dysplasia, there are many treatment options available to remove or destroy the abnormal cells.
When cervical cancer is found, prognosis and treatment options depend on many factors including the stage of the cancer, tumor size, the woman's age and her desire to have children. Treatment usually involves hysterectomy (surgical removal of the uterus and cervix) and/or radiation combined with chemotherapy.
In 2014, more than 12,000 women in the United States were diagnosed with cervical cancer and more than 4,000 died from the disease.
This number is staggering, especially because cervical cancer is preventable when screenings are done regularly. Thousands of lives could be saved each year if more women were informed about prevention, screening and vaccination.
Don’t wait to make an appointment for your Pap smear and gyn exam. Call 1-888-847-8823 today.
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