I had a Pap test in April 2022, which resulted in high risk HPV, 5 months later I've been diagnosed with cervical cancer and have a 5cm tumour in my cervix and need radical chemoradiotherapy. How ??? Has anybody else had this
I am sorry to hear about your recent diagnosis and can appreciate what a shock this news and the needing for your upcoming treatment must have been for you.
Without being involved in your care or know the full details about your situation it is difficult for anyone on the forum to be able to answer your questions fully.
I would suggest you speak to your specialist team when you can to gain greater understanding about what may have happened. Whilst others on here may share their experiences with you everyone is different, and yours sounds very unique from the information you have given us.
As you probably know in England the cervical screening programme is designed to prevent cervical cancer by picking up abnormality in the cervix at an early stage which can then either be monitored or treated until everything returns to normal in otherwise healthy individuals with no symptoms. Anyone who has a cervix and registered with a GP is invited to screening every 3-5 years depending on their age and regular follow ups according to strict guidelines when abnormalities are found.
The human papilloma virus hpv is an extremely common infection there are hundreds of strains of this and most people will come into contact with it at some point in their life. There are some high risk strains that can cause abnormal cells to occur and these sometimes can turn into cancer over time. For most people hpv clears from the body with the help of the immune system within a couple of years and doesn't cause any major issues.
High risk HPV is however responsible for the majority of abnormal cells to occur in the cervix which is why they test for this at first glance. If HPV is found they then check the sample for abnormal cells and if present they will review the person in colposcopy for a closer look and possible biopsy ( that confirms the type of abnormal cells, often as CIN or CGIN here which are pre cancerous cells) and treatment and follow up as needed.
In the majority of cases it takes many years for HPV to turn into abnormal cells and then cancer and if people attend appointments as called for screening the risk of finding cancer is low. In England about 2.4% of all cervical abnormalities will be confirmed as cancer through screening, so it really is extremely rare when this happens.
This must be such a difficult time for you and I hope you have support around you to help you through and make things a little easier for you.
Do get back if you need to or if you prefer you can talk to one of the nurses on our helpline, we're here Monday-Friday 9-5 on 0808 800 4040,
Hi, thank you for your reply. I have attended all my screening appointments as in 2003 I was treated for CIN 3 succesfully. I also attended colposcopy in October 2021 where everything was deemed "normal". Just find it difficult to be now told I have CC and am waiting for treatment. Finding it hard to get answer from my consult as I receive different answers to my condition from one day to the next.
