Some resources will do a good job clarifying the difference, but I find it difficult to get good information because so many resources will just refer to HPV generally. Like I get that the statistic about like 80% of people getting it at some point, is meant to make people feel less alone, but I never see it clarified what % of that is low risk vs. high risk. I’m not really comforted by that, especially when it’s combined with the stat about 90% of infections being cleared within 2 years. Like that’s great, but what % of people with a high risk strain clear it in 2 years?
Like if only 10% of HPV infections are high risk strains, and 10% of HPV infections aren’t cleared in 2 years, then that statistic becomes a lot less comforting for someone with a high risk strain. I would assume that most people infected get low risk strains, and that most of the infections cleared quickly are low risk strains, but I can find any actual answers on what those numbers are.
I get that most infections do not turn into cancer, but what % of high risk infections do?
Also, it says that there’s no way to know when you got it, but if you have a high risk strain, and it’s still very mild, then you probably haven’t had it long, right? Cause if you’ve had it several years, then it would have either progressed or been cleared, right? How long does the progression take?
Idk, sorry for the rant. Maybe other people will understand what I’m getting at here. If people have answers to these questions, that would be great, but I’m mostly just posting this to express my frustration with the way that information is presented.