Know your STIs

What is it?

HPV is a viral infection. There are many strains of HPVs, including some that can cause cervical, throat and anal cancer and others that cause warts. Most people with HPV do not know that they are infected and never develop symptoms or health problems from it. HPV is so common that almost every sexually-active person will get HPV at some time in their life if they have not been vaccinated against it.

How does someone get it?

You can get HPV by having vaginal, oral, or anal sex with someone who has HPV. Using barriers, such as condoms and dental dams, lowers the chances of getting HPV but does not prevent it entirely.

How can it be treated?

Many strains of HPV that cause cancer can be prevented by getting the HPV vaccine (you might have heard of Gardasil, which is one of the vaccines) especially if you get it before you become sexually active. Pap tests (aka pap smears), recommended every 3-5 years starting at age 21, check for early signs of cancer developing from HPV, so that it can be treated before it becomes cancer. Genital warts caused by HPV can be treated by your healthcare provider, by medication, or may go away on their own.