The human papillomavirus (HPV) has been shown to have a clear link to cervical cancer (and some other types of cancer). While some types of the HPV virus have no symptoms at all, one symptom, genital warts, may be visible or invisible as a result of being internal. It is concerning that so many people know so little about HPV and HPV treatment as sexually transmitted strains of HPV have been proven to very often cause cervical cancer.

HPV is one of the most prevalent and highly contagious of all diseases with an estimated 70% of people infected with the HPV virus. The virus is so contagious because it can be contracted through skin to skin contact. Genital warts are the most well-known of the different strains of the HPV virus and while much is known about other sexually transmitted infections, HPV is one that many people have never heard of and/or know very little about.
Symptoms of HPV:

Genital warts may sometimes be located in a spot where there they can be seen and felt, but quite often they are not positioned externally. Genital warts can be located inside the vagina, on the cervix or in the anus. This means that a person with genital warts may have no idea that they are infected.

As genital warts are sometimes flesh coloured and painless, they can cause no symptoms at all and may be difficult to detect. Any bumps, changes, growths and unusual features of the skin should always be examined by a health professional. Similarly, if itching, pain or unexpected bleeding occurs, this should be discussed with a health professional.

Diagnosis of HPV:

For females, genital warts are sometimes identified during gynaelogical examinations and particularly during pap smears. The purpose of a pap smear is to identify abnormal changes in the cervix and not to screen for genital warts, or other sexually transmitted infections. However, they are incredibly useful for helping to identify anomalies.

If a person is found to have genital warts, the diagnosis does not mean that their infection will automatically progress to cancer. But, women who are diagnosed with HPV need to be especially vigilant in keeping up to date with their pap smears.

If abnormal changes are identified during a pap smear, it is likely that a doctor will suggest a follow up screening procedure (such as a colposcope) and monitor the person closely to identify any further changes in the cervix.

A pap smear result may indicate cervical dysplasia which does not necessarily mean cervical cancer. However, cervical dysplasia can be an indicator of ‘carcinoma in situ’ (CIS) and cancer of the cervix. It is possible for cases of dysplasia to regress over time and there is no definitive answer as to what causes progression to invasive cervical cancer.

CIS is thought to be approximately 95% treatable and curable and in CIS, the outer layer of normal cells is replaced by cells that are cancerous. Invasive cervical cancer is different in that it results from cancer cells invading the underlying cervical tissue. This cancer is most often seen in women aged fifty years and older, whereas CIS commonly affects younger women aged between 25 and 34.

More on the importance of the pap smear:

The prognosis for invasive cervical cancer greatly depends on how far the disease has progressed when it is first diagnosed. Regrettably, the mortality rate for cervical cancer is considerably higher than it should be and this is a result of an estimated one third of women failing to have regular pap smears. It is also estimated that 90% of deaths as a result of cervical cancer could be prevented if detected earlier through a pap smear.

The HPV need not be fatal, but as particular strains of it have clear links to cervical cancer, it is important that women have regular pap smears and discuss any changes or concerns with their doctor.

There are many different types of  HPV infection – over 250 types! The vast majority of these are harmless. Most cause no signs or symptoms, and go away by themselves untreated. A few cause warts to appear on hands, feet, knees, elbows or genitals: and as embarrassing as the warts may be, they go away in time as well, and cause no permanent harm to the human body.

But there are a few types in the 250 strains of HPV that do cause conditions that lead to cancer. It is important to know about these and understand the ways in which cancer-causing strains of HPV are transmitted, so that you can best prevent life-threatening disease in yourself.

The strains of HPV that are related to cancer are all sexually-transmitted forms of the virus. None of them carry symptoms. This means that you might be infected with one of these strains for several years or even decades, and then the first sign of HPV infection that you notice is a cancer symptom! For this reason, it is good for you to be aware of HPV and the ways in which you can protect yourself not only from initial infection with the virus, but from cancerous states from developing as years pass.

The big problem comes from the fact that so much of the population that is sexually active carries the HPV virus as some point, and that many of us will carry it at some point in our lives. Many of us will carry it and never know; it will clear itself up and leave no sign of harm. But for some of us, it can lead to cancer.

The HPV virus can lie dormant for many years before it leads to a cancerous condition. As it lies dormant, it can leave the immune system weakened and susceptible to various serious conditions, including those which are precancerous. After some years, pre-cancerous conditions develop when the virus attacks skin cells outside and inside your body, such as cells on the skin of your penis or vulva. It attacks skin cells that line the vagina or the anus. When the HPV virus has been acquired during oral sex, it might attack the lining of the throat and lungs.

The HPV virus, when it attacks skin cells, causes changes in those cells like the changes that cause common warts. The cells mutate and form misshapen masses. These masses over time can become lesions and tumorous masses, that become full-blown cancer and spread to other areas of the body. But if these masses are caught early, their development into cancer, and the cancer’s spread, can be halted before it becomes life-threatening.

This is why regular health checks are so important. Any woman who has ever had sex should be checked routinely for precancerous cells of the cervix, with a pap test. Every year, about 12,000 women in the U.S. alone are diagnosed with cervical cancer. In a given year, between 3,000 and 4,000 of these women will die of the disease. It is believed that in about 70% of these cases, the original cause of the cancer to the cervix was HPV!

Women can prevent much of the risk presented by the strains of HPV which cause cervical cancers, by being vaccinated against these strains. Two vaccines are now available – Gardasil and Cervarix. Both target specifically the strains of HPV that can lead to cancer of the cervix. Talk to your doctor about how they can protect you too!

The potential for cancer to develop as a result of HPV is very real, and just one of the reasons that people should always, always practice safe sex, without exception.

Which types of HPV can lead to cancer?

Around a dozen or so strains of HPV can lead to cancer, with the most common of these being types 16, 18, 31, and 45. While cervical cancer tends to be the most common type of cancer resulting from HPV, cancer can also occur in the anus, the vulva and the penis, and type 16 has been associated with oropharyngeal squamous-cell carcinoma, which is a type of “head and neck” cancer.

Luckily, most HPV infections will not lead to cancer. However, the types that do generally show no visible signs of infection until the cancer has reached an advanced stage.

It is recommended that women have regular pap smears. As uncomfortable as a pap smear may be, it is absolutely necessary to ensure a long, healthy life. If HPV is developing into cervical cancer within your body, you won’t know until it reaches the late stages.

Playing Safe

For men and women, it’s a good idea to have a regular check up and a blood test now and then. Even if you think you’re not a high risk HPV candidate, the fact is that more than half of the human populace has been infected with some form of HPV, and it is estimated that at least 50% of sexually active people will contract a venereal HPV strain in their lives. True, most of these strains are relatively benign, and genital warts, while unsightly and uncomfortable, are hardly a terminal illness, but there’s no excuse to not practice safe sex and see your doctor now and then.

The high risk types

To clarify, only a certain number of HPV types are considered high risk. You are pretty much safe if you’re only dealing with hand warts, plantar warts, etcetera. The strains that are more likely to lead to cancer include genital HPV types 16, 18, 31, 33, 35, 39, 45, 51, 52, 56, 58, 59, 66, 68, and 73, with 16 and 18 leading to somewhere around 70% of cervical cancer. High risk types of HPV only show in flat, almost invisible genital warts, which is why they will usually need a blood test or pap smear to detect.

Genital warts are caused by types 6 and 11, and are considered low risk. As unpleasant as they are, they are not likely to lead to cancer, and can be safely removed or treated by a doctor with genital warts treatments and wart removal methods (it should be noted, we don’t recommend trying to treat HPV warts yourself until you’ve asked your doctor how to remove warts, and other wart treatment options).

It is estimated that, worldwide, there are around 473,000 cases of cervical cancer per year, with 253,000 resulting in death. To put that in perspective, about 500,000 women die from breast cancer each year.

This doesn’t have to be the case. Cervical cancer can be prevented by practicing safe sex, by having regular checkups conducted, and more recently, by a relatively new HPV vaccination.

Be careful, know your sex partner’s history, see your doctor and ask questions.