HPV Symptoms

Symptoms of HPV in women are not always visible to the naked eye.  The most serious condition arising from contracting HPV for women is cervical cancer.  This can be diagnosed and caught early with regular pap tests at your annual gynecological exam.

There are other types of HPV, the types that don’t cause cancer, whose symptoms are genital warts.  Then there are yet other types of HPV that don’t cause any symptoms at all.  There are truly dozens and dozens of types of HPV.

But again, for symptoms of HPV in women, the most important thing is getting that pap test every single year so if you do have HPV it doesn’t turn into cancer of the cervix.

You are more likely to see genital warts (symptoms of HPV) in women who:

• smoke and drink
• have a weak immune system ( this can be due to medication or illness)
• have multiple sexual partners

Symptoms of HPV in women can include genital warts inside the vagina or inside the anus.  They can also be outside the vagina or anus.  They can be on skin near the vagina or anus.  They can also be on the cervix (inside the body).

HPV symptoms in men are for the most part similar to those in women: genital warts.  Remember, though, not all types of HPV cause genital warts.

Some types of HPV symptoms in men never show themselves at all, and the body clears them out naturally.  There are even some types of HPV that cause warts on other parts of the body, like the hands but they are a bit rarer.  The most common HPV symptoms in men are genital warts.

If you have genital warts, then you have HPV. The warts are flesh-colored and they can be raised or they can be flat.  They can also have a bumpy appearance like a head of cauliflower.

HPV symptoms in men can be genital warts that appear on the penis, scrotum, thighs, groin area, or inside or around the anus.   Did you know that genital warts can also occur in the mouth, on the lips, tongue, and throat?

Treatment for HPV symptoms in men would be to get the warts treated by a doctor.  That will be a removal in the doctor’s office and can also include prescription medication.  You’ll have to go back for a follow-up visit to make sure the warts are all gone.

The first thing to know about HPV is that it is the most common STD.  There are also dozens of typs, and many people have it and don’t even know it.  For all these reasons and more, it’s important to know how to tell if you have symptoms of HPV.

The easiest and most common of the symptoms of HPV are genital warts.  If you have genital warts then you probably have HPV.  But don’t think that if you don’t have genital warts you don’t have HPV.  There are over 70 types of Human Papilloma virus (HPV) and not all types cause genital warts.

HPV Can Cause Cancer

HPV is serious: there are health problems of HPV that are extremely serious, including cancer.  Yes: HPV can cause cancer.

HPV, Cancer & Genital Warts

The one thing you can feel good about if you have genital warts (meaning you have HPV) is that it’s not cancer.  The type of HPV that causes cancer is not the same type of HPV that causes cancer.  But do yourself a favor if you see the genital warts: go see a doctor right away.

Don’t use an over the counter wart remover if you have genital warts.  That stuff is meant for other types of warts not associated with HPV.

Get HPV treated before it turns into cancer.  For women and HPV, that means getting an annual PAP test.  That will check for the type of cancer (cervical) that’s caused by HPV.

First of all, not to panic if you think you have HPV symptoms.  It’s the most common sexually transmitted virus in the U.S.  More than half of all sexually active people will have HPV at some point in their lives.  This comes as a shock to most people because very often, we don’t ever see the HPV symptoms at all.  The body fights the virus off and we never know we even had it.

But HPV symptoms in women can lead to more serious conditions like cervical cancer.  Usually HPV goes away in a few years.  Sometimes, however, the HPV can remain in a woman’s body and begin to cause serious harm.

Again, don’t panic!  The types of HPV that linger in women are only a few types out of around 40 types of genital HPV.

The special problem with HPV symptoms in women is the possibility that the HPV will linger and begin to cause the cells in the woman’s cervix to change.  Over time, and left untreated, this can lead to cervical cancer.

But don’t worry, there’s a way to help ensure you don’t get cervical cancer: get regular Pap tests.  See a gynecologist once a year for regular PAP tests and if there ever should be any cervical cancer it will show up in the test and you will get treated right away.  The PAP test actually shows the cell changes caused by HPV symptoms in women before they become cancerous.  The doctor can treat the damage before it actually turns in to cancer.

The easiest of the HPV symptoms to spot is genital warts.  If you have genital warts then you probably have HPV.  But not to panic yet: most people who have HPV symptoms will naturally clear out the virus with no serious health problems.

There are over one hundred types of HPV, and not all types of HPV symptoms include warts.  Some forms of HPV are associated with cancer but if you have the warts it’s probably not the type of HPV that’s cancerous.

You get HPV from other people during sexual contact.  The warts may not show up until weeks or months after contact.  About half of sexually active people have HPV and many don’t even know it because they don’t have any HPV Symptoms.

The warts come in many forms, too.  Single, multiple, raised, flat, pink, flesh-colored, and they appear in any area “down there” including all the way around and down to the thigh.

HPV symptoms come in other forms besides the warts.  In women, the pap test will come back abnormal.  If this happens, the doctor will then do further tests to determine whether it’s HPV symptoms or something else.  There are two strains of HPV that cause 70% of all cervical cancers.  Good idea to get the annual pap test!