Abnormal pap and HPV - Human Papillomavirus (HPV) Message Board

sunshineocd11 · 07-07-2009, 04:54 PM

Hi! I just had a Doctor's appointment and for the first time the pap came back abnormal. My doctor told me I had HPV and needed to come back in for a coloposy within the next two months(I was so scared on the phone I scheduled it for next week). I'm pretty scared because he said "We are not too sure what's going on" and "it could be abnormal from the HPV or possiby pre cancerous cells, we need to check it out." The thing that REALLY scared me was that he said about 2-5 percent come back with that. To me, that's very little.

I like my doctor, but it sounded really serious and I didn't get many awnsers and I'm scared that it could be something else. It seems like many women go through this(esp. posting on this board). Does this sound like something that could be from HPV? Thanks.

jill60 · 07-08-2009, 02:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sunshineocd11

Hi! I just had a Doctor's appointment and for the first time the pap came back abnormal. My doctor told me I had HPV and needed to come back in for a coloposy within the next two months(I was so scared on the phone I scheduled it for next week). I'm pretty scared because he said "We are not too sure what's going on" and "it could be abnormal from the HPV or possiby pre cancerous cells, we need to check it out." The thing that REALLY scared me was that he said about 2-5 percent come back with that. To me, that's very little.

I like my doctor, but it sounded really serious and I didn't get many awnsers and I'm scared that it could be something else. It seems like many women go through this(esp. posting on this board). Does this sound like something that could be from HPV? Thanks.

After my test came back the Dr. did a a biopsy of my cervix, waited for those results, depending what the biopsy results were would determine whether I needed the coloposy.

Jill

00Jen00 · 07-10-2009, 02:05 PM

Sunshine,

Sounds like your doctor was not very informative. Get him to explain what the abnormal results were - ASCUS, LGSIL, or HGSIL. He should know those terms and explain them to you - if he's unwilling to explain, I would suggest getting a new doctor, you don't want to go through this without a good medical partner.

It really depends on what "abnormal" was - if you have low-grade abnormalities, then you'll probably just get the colposcopy/biopsy and then have more frequent pap smears to monitor the condition - low-grade abnormalities often regress on their own. Since your doctor "isn't sure what this is" hopefully that means that he didn't find too bad of abnormalities, because if it was really bad, he would KNOW. So, deep breath, you've probably caught this early and you should be ok. What concerns me most in your post is the lack of communication and respect that your doctor is giving you. Hopefully you can get through to him or find someone else who will help you.

Jill, the colposcopy is just when they look at your cervix under magnification - that would be done before they biopsied your tissues. Maybe you meant that you waited to see if you needed a more invasive procedure like LEEP?

heymissA · 07-28-2009, 02:49 AM

I feel you! I just found out that my last PAP had an ASCUS result with possible HPV, and it felt so isolating, so gross, so upsetting, and lonely! And then I googled it... and I feel better! Apparently, it's not rare, something like 80% of all sexually active people have some form of HPV. It's (generally) not high-risk, and (generally) treatable with simple procedures.

It's still not a walk in the park, considering that I'd rather be 100% healthy, but at least we're not alone

http://www.cdc.gov/std/hpv/stdfact-hpv-and-men.htm#test

sunshineocd11 · 12-23-2009, 12:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by heymissA

I feel you! I just found out that my last PAP had an ASCUS result with possible HPV, and it felt so isolating, so gross, so upsetting, and lonely! And then I googled it... and I feel better! Apparently, it's not rare, something like 80% of all sexually active people have some form of HPV. It's (generally) not high-risk, and (generally) treatable with simple procedures.

It's still not a walk in the park, considering that I'd rather be 100% healthy, but at least we're not alone

http://www.cdc.gov/std/hpv/stdfact-hpv-and-men.htm#test

Yes, I ended up speaking with my Doctor about HPV when I when in for my Colop. He informed me that it is very common and he deals with this one a daily basis with his patients. I had the Colop. and he said there that was really just a small area that needed to be cleared up, so I just need to go back in 6 months(sigh of relief) but now I'm worried that it will get worse instead of better!