r/HPV

I have a girlfriend whom I love (6 months). We were very active sexually. I had genital warts a few years ago, got them removed and got the vaccine.

I now have three warts, visible on my scrotum. I fear that she already got HPV from me, however she doesn't have warts yet.

I'm in a country that genital warts are still a taboo. And she has medical anxieties. Even though I get the cryotherapy she will notice the red marks, right?

Rather than breaking down the news to her, I want to break up and terminate the relationship. Even though I love her.

I'm in a terrible state mentally.

So i found some braille like spots on my groin/inner thigh area about 2 months ago. They didn’t spread nor change so i didn’t think much of it. I had my primary check them out and she said she thought they were warts. She said it very nonchalantly. I went to a derm and she confirmed. My issue here is, neither of my providers gave me information on what this really is.

My primary kinda just said “here’s what we can do for them, bye!”

And my derm kinda just sat there and looked sorry for me (cuz i was crying). She gave me the timeline on what we’ll do to get rid of them. But she didn’t give me ANY info on HPV. None. She said they could come back after we get rid of them and literally that was it.

I didn’t know anything about this condition until i got on Reddit AND then did my own research outside of Reddit.

You’d think that either of my providers would had let me know my immune system can clear or suppress this and it’s not a guaranteed lifelong condition.

I’m just really confused and frustrated that i had to run to the internet to get any answers. Maybe a gynecologist would had been more thorough in their explanation? Idk.

I (33f) just recently found out that what I thought was a mole/skin tag on my inner thigh is probably genital wart. My son now almost a year old has probably had contact with it because I often breastfeed him in my lap where the wart is. What are the chances he gets hpv? And if so is it dangerous?

I think i have HPV genital warts, but i went to the doctor and he said that it does not look like it, so he offered to just get it removed. In about a week i noticed there were some left(or so I thought) went back to the same doctor and got it removed again. After a while, I realized more warts appeared, so I decided to change the doctor and he got me urine test(if I understand it correctly, hpv is in the skin, so doesn’t make sense?) and said that we should get it removed and wait to see if they come back. It has been 6 months and I had like 3 more, but doctor said that they are too small to take the biopsy, so we have to wait. I am just so scared of getting my skin irritated again, my last removal therapy left a really bad scar, but I don’t know what else to do. They also offered me a brush test, but warned me that it might not be 100% accurate. I really don’t know what to do now, since even the doctor couldn’t say, i feel so ashamed of myself for being dirty and wouldn’t want anyone to get in trouble, cuz of me, especially with the risk of cancer :(
Has anyone ever had a similar experience? Is there any other way to get tested or should i really wait longer?

(i didn’t expect it to be this long, I’m sorry, I felt like i needed to explain everything, first time facing an issue like this)

I am 26F, never got the HPV vaccine. I was thinking about getting it, but then I didn’t realize it was 3 or so doses? Also was reading something about getting it up to age 26? I’ll be 27 in October.

Is it worth getting at this age?

Thanks!

Hi everyone! I just wanted to create this post to hear about people's lives after being diagnosed with HPV genital warts. I'm looking for some hope because I often struggle with feeling like I'm damaged, and I'm trying to remind myself that my diagnosis doesn't define me.

Has anyone gone on to get married or have a successful, loving relationship after their diagnosis? Have you had children? If so, what was your pregnancy and delivery experience like? Did you have any outbreaks during pregnancy, and did HPV affect your child in any way?
I'd really appreciate hearing your experiences. Thank you so much for sharing.

hi! 27 f recently had an abnormal pap smear for HPV18. i’m getting a colposcopy in 2/3 weeks. prior to the diagnosis/pap, i hooked up with 3 new men, and one other i haven’t been with in a while. of those, 2/4 used protection but all of them ate me out. also i have no presence of genital warts. here are my questions:

1. do i need to disclose t

o my recent past partners

1. that i have HPV? google said no and my doctor didn’t mention it, but it feels wrong not to?
2. two of them have reached out to me about continuing our relationship and hooking up again and i’m unsure of what my options are. this feels like an, i need to be celibate until it clears sorta thing, and im not sure if it actually is. can we have penetrative sex with condoms? can they go down on me? hand stuff on me? it feels very confusing and i’m unsure of what the right limits are.

sorry if these are dumb questions or anything i just truly DO NOT KNOW! and google is not helping me much. thank you!

I accidentally found that he received the 1st HPV vaccination certificate after we have a big argument whether we plan to stay together or separate after this 1 year . What it can be and what should I do?

Hey everyone, I (23F) was recently diagnosed with HPV and the doctor told me that if I am vaccinated, I should be safe from worst-case scenarios.

The thing is, I got 2 of my shots before becoming sexually active. I made sure to use condoms when I was and I had only one partner, although I do not know his HPV status. I wasn't sexually active after that and in that duration I got my last shot. After that is when I got my pap and they said I most likely have an HPV infection.

I am really worried about the efficacy of the vaccination because I have mostly heard that it is useless if you weren't vaccinated prior to contact.

I would appreciate some reassurance, but also I understand if people think I am stupid for not getting my last shot in time...

the timeline goes like this: not sexually active and got my 2 shots ->one partner but used condoms -> last shot -> sexually active without condoms with one partner -> HPV diagnosis

So its been 3 years now and my last cryotherapy session was on 24/5/2026 there was 3 warts i removed them i used to check with my dr every 6 months but dir some reason i had a recurrence a month after my last session i so i saw a new dr he told me that cryotherapy wont work anymore and he told me i need aldara 3 time a week fir 6 hours and Podophyllin 25% 1 time a week and iso acnetin and zinc and Intralesional immunotherapy some type of needles that u use in the warts its only one wart but its big its the first time i had one this big sense i removed the bigger once in my first session the problem is i cant find aldara anywhere and Podophyllin is only used in clinic but he wants me to get it idk how but i can aquire the hand formula a dr told me he can make the formula like 10mg of it but it will be expensive at this point im tired and there’s no support at all and im scared its been so long im dealing with this and he told me u dont need to remove the wart at all nothing is gonna happen and all meds are worth 100$ for 2 months i dont know what to do i cant even focus on my life

Biopsy 1- BENIGN
Biopsy 2- CIN 1

The results popped up on my portal and I was so scared to look!! Been staring at my screen for almost an hour. Although I’m sad CIN 1 was present , I am incredibly relieved to have gotten this over with and hopefully it clears up in a year! 😭 I’m here if you guys need anything. My experience was very good with the overall appointment as they used LIDOCANE and I didn’t feel a thing!! OBGYN also instructed me to take papillex and I’m also taking prenatals. I’m just glad it’s over

For a few months I have seen small bumps at genital area.. I have tested negative standard std testing after that I visited the dermatologist he curttaged all visible bumps and showed a small white core in few bumps. But didn't carry out any further test on the scraped bumps. How can I conclude what they are? Is there any biopsy for new micro bumps present to check what exactly was those for my mental peace. Am in India kindly give advice.

My 24F doctor is off on holiday and I have no idea how to interpret this. I’ve been having a myriad of different symptoms, 6 hospital visits can’t figure out what’s wrong but I just got this result, I was sex trafficked in the past but even after that I had the same test come back normal, I’ve narrowed it down and the only way it could be is my fiancé?? He is scared to get tested, idk what to do but I don’t want to jump to conclusions just yet.

Results (since I can’t post a pic) **HPV, Aptima High 16/18,45 POSITIVE**

Awaiting Pap smear and coloscopy results.

Thanks. I’m scared.

Hi all,

I recently tested HR positive (negative for 16/18) right as I’ve restarted a combined birth control pill.

I’ve read studies about hormones affecting HPV persistence, but my doctor said I shouldn’t discontinue the pill. However, I’ve also read success stories about women clearing HPV only after stopping BC.

Has anyone successfully cleared HPV even while remaining on birth control? If so, which form are you on?

I take it for pain management and it’s a great help, but don’t want to cause harm to my body in the long run with any chance of this turning into cervical cancer.

Thank you!

has anyone had one initial outbreak of genital warts and no reacurrance after treatment? i had 2 removed about 3 years ago. are we still considered contagious or cleared?

Hey guys,
I’m a black girl was a virgin but met a guy and I got eaten out April 26th. Unprotected. I’m unvaccinated for hpv but after a month noticed a firm small black dot on the top of my outer vagina.
I payed it no mind kinda felt it and was just like “meh”. I hadn’t done anything with a guy prior to that or after and he didn’t have a cold sore or a history of herpes when I asked so I assumed it was safe. Being unaware of hpv.

I went to the clinic today for a full panel since we were sexually active 3 weeks ago penetrative.(so after I noticed the spot not before). I flagged the weird spot and she said it didn’t look like a wart.
She sprayed it with this freezing thing then said
“Wow, it’s actually a wart”. Then tried to freeze it off.
It really stung and hurt and was cold.
I felt kind of dismissed because I know clinicians can be inexperience when it comes to spotting issues on black skin.
It does have a “cauliflower” texture though I guess? Though it’s so hard to tell.

I’m so confused as to how such a small unnoticeable little spot that I can’t even see properly or only feel is a definitively a wart because of a spray test she did. I also have health anxiety so when I told her it was a wart she was kind of like “no, you’ll be fine” before checking. Of course I believe her. If I was the one to bring it up it’s clear I was hyper fixated on this for a while and brushing it off.

Is it possible I’m being misdiagnosed with something else? Is it definitive?
I’ve accepted I have it for sure.

Also how do I bring this up to the guy I’m seeing. I told him I need to call him and he hasn’t replied back yet. What do I say. I feel so dumb and extremely hopeless. I shouldn’t have been so reckless. And since we also had sex while I had this weird spot what do I even say?
He’s aware I was a virgin because it was painful the first time but I’m scared he might not believe it’s from him.
I’ve never even kissed anyone apart from him. Like what do I even do?

He also had a full panel test done recently like a month before he ate me out in April (before he met me) and I saw his results.
I feel stupid.

I F22 was exposed to hpv in autumn of 2024, my partner at the time and i had a threeway with a friend we did not know was infected (they told us weeks later when they started having GW), all we could do was watch and wait, hope the virus would clear before any physical symptoms affected us. by july of 2025 my partner (now ex) started having GW and i began to see them pop up on my outer labia a few weeks later, since then i have done cryo, imiquimod, taken supplements and even stupidly tried at home remedies. the last time i was treated i got cryo and used imiquimod for several weeks (lost count but less than 16) and this seemed to clear up all the physical symptoms whilst leaving some scaring that has been gradually fading since april. i spent april, may and june wart free and felt a since of hope and safety in my body for the first time in awhile. HOWEVER about a week ago i went through some stress in my personal life and work has been killing me, i noticed on monday this week that a new wart has seemingly appeared, though singular and not yet spreading i am devastated, anxious and depressed.

i fear i will never clear this virus and truly get my love/sex life back.

i have also been using glizigen spray for about 5 months and took viusid supplements for 3.

M30 here, last time i had sexual activity summer 2023, had been abstaining for a while and also not paying much attention down there and not shaving too often, noticed some mole like thing which turned out to be a wart (i thought it was pigment first and idk how long its been there)

Anyways, i think my doc is incompetent considering hes only some years older than me and when i asked him can i just go have sex with people and never disclose this? he nearly manically said "yes it doesnt matter, everyone has this 😁 whoever had sex once in their life has HPV so unless you are only dating virgins its all good!"

I dont know whats worse, people who are extremely negative about everything or those just acting like everything is perfect and fine to a point where its unsettling.

Im going for a second opinion elsewhere.

A little encouragement for anyone who needs it. ❤️

In 2023, at just 21 years old, I tested positive for high-risk HPV (not types 16, 18, or 45). I never found out exactly which high-risk type I had, but hearing the words "high-risk" was enough to scare me.

After that, I chose to stop having sex for a year and focused on my health. I never went back for another test before I got pregnant in 2024.

During my pregnancy, I had another abnormal Pap test and was told to come back for repeat testing 6 weeks after giving birth. Life happened, and I didn't make it back then.

Finally, I went back on June 25, 2026, and after waiting for the results, I can finally say...

EVERYTHING CAME BACK NEGATIVE!! 🙌🏽😭❤️

No high-risk HPV detected.No low-risk HPV detected.

I'm sharing this because I know how terrifying an HPV diagnosis can feel. I spent so much time worrying and wondering what would happen. Every person's journey is different, but I hope my story reminds someone that a positive HPV test does not always mean it will be there forever.

Today, I'm celebrating this victory and thanking the highest for this blessing.

A doctor told me that a fleshy growth in my mouth was almost certainly caused by hpv but i have never had sex or kissed anyone.

Is it really possible that this growth is caused by hpv?