Human Papillomavirus (HPV)

What is HPV?

HPV stands for the Human Papillomavirus. It is a group of over 100 very common viruses. Most commonly, it affects the skin area. Around 8 in 10 people will get infected by HPV in their lifetime but usually, these individuals will not notice it as most people do not get any symptoms.

How does the HPV virus spread?

The most common areas that are affected by the HPV are the mouth, throat and genitals. The HPV virus is transmitted through skin contact, you do not need to have penetrative sex to catch the virus. You can get the HPV from:

• skin to skin contact of the genital areas.
• vaginal, anal or oral sex.
• sharing of sex toys.

Which conditions are linked to HPV infection?

There is a range of conditions that are linked to HPV. As mentioned before, in most people it does not cause any problems but in some people, it can cause genital warts and abnormalities in cells that can develop into cancer. Some variants of the HPV are more likely to cause cancer and have been linked to:

• Cervical cancer
• Anal cancer
• Cancer of the penis
• Vaginal Cancer
• Valvular Cancer
• and particular types of head and neck cancers.

Read the latest information on the NHS website by clicking here.

How can you protect yourself from HPV?

There are things that you can do to help reduce your risk of HPV infection.

• Using condoms can help protect you against HPV, but they do not cover all the skin around the genitals so you are not fully protected.
• Getting the HPV vaccine. It provides protection against some of the main types of HPV that causes genital warts and cancer. It does not cover all the HPV types. The NHS offers the HPV vaccine to certain age groups, you can find out more on the NHS HPV vaccine page here.