Positive HPV smear…cheating husband?

I still can't settle. Woman has a smear and all is okay even though ex had had an affair. All STI tests for both are negative. Woman sleeps with someone new and wonders if h has. Smear is HPV positive. Smear one year later is clear. Did h cheat again or was it because she had a new lover?

I haven't slept with anyone except DH since I broke up with my previous partner in 2008. I have no reason to doubt that his timescale is about the same. I tested positive for HPV about 4 years ago. It's just one of those things. It had cleared by the time I was re-tested a year later.

Sorry to hear that, I hope you're ok. 💐

Had a talk at work from a nurse specialising in cervical cancer and she was clear that you can also catch it from non-sexual contact as well so it is not proof a partner has cheated

livehealthy.muhealth.org/stories/you-dont-need-have-sex-get-hpv-6-surprising-facts-about-hpv

Not sure where you are but I’m in Scotland and between my last smear and recent one they now notify you if you’ve tested positive because your result is only analysed for changes if it’s positive so basically it could have been positive with no changes loads of times before but only on this test would you actually be alerted to that. I had cell changes and needed it treated during a colposcopy. I had cold coagulation, which despite the name actually involves a very hot probe. I had the local anaesthetic and it was honestly fine. I worried way more than I should have. I now have to go for another smear 6 months later which is now so just hoping it’s managed to clear it 🤞🏻 Good luck, I’m sure itl be fine

Just passing by to say: colposcopies, IMO, (and I've had a few), are actually less unpleasant than smears. They use stirrups! Way more helpful for the person navigating at the other end.

Also vulva cancer which I've just been diagnosed with

It's possible he's had it since before you met op and as we have only recently started checking for it you've had it all along but never knew about it

Although the catching him going to meet another women would make me suspicious that he has cheated at some point

It IS defined as an STI. It’s an infection that is predominantly sexually transmitted.

Do you have other reasons to suspect DH has been unfaithful as it's quite a jump!

I know you were a virgin when you met, but was he?

From what I understand they changed the test in recent years to test for HPV first and then to test for abnormal cells if that comes back positive.

I had a positive smear last year after all previous smears being negative. I've been with my husband for 12 years and had no reason to believe he'd cheated so I was confused until I read it can lay dormant for years. My follow up smear test this year was negative so try not to worry too much.

Yeah but they're probably not shagging around, are they 😂😂 just trying to reassure OP that her husband isn't, either!

That would be due to having skin to skin contact, or not being celibate, before becoming a nun.
Nobody would assume, every nun is a virgin.

I had that result about five years ago. It went away on the next one. My DH and I had been together about 18 years then and neither been with anyone else.

NHS have only recently tested for HPV (new criteria) previously checked for cell changes. HPV is now known to be the risk for cervical cancer. Lies dormant, body can also clear itself from HPV. I honestly don’t believe your husband has been unfaithful.

I have regularly moved from
positive to negative HPV even when not sexually active.

Unless there’s any other indication of cheating then you are unreasonable to suspect this is the reason.

It’s really normal to be HPV positive at some point.

Some nuns with HPV...

https://www.gavi.org/vaccineswork/immaculate-infection-riddle-hpv-ghanas-nuns#:~:text=HPV%20mainly%20spreads%20through%20sexual,at%20risk%20of%20cervical%20cancer.

I'm in the same situation OP. I've been with my husband 12 years and tested positive for HPV this year despite having all negative tests before. I spoke to the GP and nurse about it and they said it can be dormant for years, most people have it and my situation is not uncommon at all. I guess you never know but I'm pretty certain my husband hasn't cheated. Good luck with everything!

Urgh same. But I don't think it's until perpetuity. Smears stop after the age of 65. Quite a few years ahead for me though.

I had my smear yesterday and the nurse stressed that a positive result would not be surprising and “we all end up with one eventually” . It was news to me but 🤷‍♀️

No one is unreasonable for being frightened to have an intimate procedure for cell changes that could lead to cancer.

Don’t attempt to diminish her feelings.

Caught him going to meet another woman while telling me he was meeting friends, though he’s still insistent it was completely innocent.

If it was completely innocent, why did he omit to mention it (I find cohabiting couples tend to mention most things to each other) but much more significantly, why did he lie about who he was meeting??

How did he know her?

I had a positive HPV smear a few years ago and never once thought it was because my husband had cheated.

Unless you also caught your husband arranging to meet another woman while telling you he was meeting friends, I don't understand the relevance of this statement.

Spot on

It doesn't sound like you trust him so why are you trying to have a baby with him?

80% of people will have HPV at some time in their life, usually with no symptoms. It is not an STI. It is diagnosed from a smear test. There’s no equivalent test for men.

There’s no treatment, Most people find that their immune system gets rid of it in a couple of years. In the meantime, annual smears are recommended.

In a small number of cases it can cause genital warts and certain cancers including throat, cervical, penile and rectal cancer.

HPV vaccine was introduced for teenage girls several years ago and now boys are also vaccinated. There’s been a notable reduction in HPV infections as a result.

Please don’t worry about the colposcopy, OP. It really is no big deal.