What you should know about the Human Papillomavirus (HPV)

Did you know that cervical cancer is the second most common type of cancer in women? Or that according to the National Cervical CancerCoalition (NCCC), 12,000 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer each year and 4,000 will die? How about that the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) is found in 99% of cervical cancers?

The good news is that cervical cancer is one of the most preventable cancers.  January is cervicalhealth Awareness Month and today, we’ll take a look at HPV.

HPV is a type of virus that can cause abnormal growth (for example, warts) and other changes to cells.  Infection for a long time with certain types of HPV can cause cervical cancer.  It can also play a role in some other types of cancer such as anal, vaginal, vulvar, penile, oropharyngeal and squamous cell skin cancers.  There are over 100 types of HPV, but experts have determined that 14 of these types actually cause cervical cancer.

HPV is shared through skin to skin contact and not through bodily fluid exchange.  There are approximately 6 million new cases of HPV each year with at least 20 million people estimated as currently infected. 

The National Cervical Cancer Coalition explains that to better understand HPV and its effect on cervical cancer, visualize the cervix as soil and high risk HPV as the seed.  There are other co-factors that can increase the risk of cancer, which can be thought of as fertilizer.

 Some of the co-factors include: smoking, long-term use of oral contraceptives, a weakened immune system, power diet (lack of Vitamin A and Folic Acid), presence of other sexually transmitted infections such as Chlamydia, history of many sexual partners, sexual activity at a young age, male partners without circumcision and possibly having many children.

What the best defense against HPV? Experts are now recommending that girls around the age of 11-13, who are not yet sexually active, receive a vaccination against HPV.  The vaccination is given in three doses over six months and guards against HPV Type 16 and Type 18.  Genotyping for HPV 16 and Type 18 has proven responsible for 70% of cervical cancer worldwide.  When boys are vaccinated by a product produced by the company Gardasil® the vaccination also protects against Type 6 and Type 11 which causes about 90% of genital warts cases in men and women. The vaccination is also recommended for homosexuals as a guard against oral and anal cancers.  Approximately 30% of oral carcinomas can be attributed to HPV and HPV Type 16 has been linked to some head and neck cancers.

According to Dr. Kristen Jacobs, Director of Cytopathology and Reproductive Medicine at The Medical Foundation, “the vaccine is effective and I do encourage that girls get the vaccine ; however, it hasn’t proven effective against all carcinogenic types which means that women can still become infected with a type they’ve not been vaccinated against.”

Dr. Jacobs recommends that the best screening for women is to have Pap smears because the Pap test finds changes in the cells of the cervix that are not normal.  Around the age of 30, a woman should have a Pap test and an HPV test to establish a baseline for future testing. It isn’t recommended for women younger than 30-years-old to have an HPV test because often the body will naturally clear itself of some of the viruses.  Typically, women ages 35-55 are diagnosed with HPV.

The Medical Foundation has the capability to perform Genotyping for HPV Type 16 and Type 18 using the Roche cobas® HPV test.  The Foundation also performs testing on approximately 85,000 Pap smears each year. If you are a healthcare provider and would like more information about the Roche cobas® testing provided by the Foundation, or information about SurePath or ThinPrep Pap tests, please email info@sbmf.org or contact your marketing representative at 574.234.4176 *61214.