Hi, I'm happy to answer. No he never got them despite them reappearing (on me) just once in my twenties after we got together. He must have the same HPV virus's that I've got by now but warts is something that didn't affect him. X 

I'm 47, had my first smear in 5 years (thanks Covid) and results were HPV+ with abnormal cells. I've been waiting 3 weeks so far since receiving the results for my Colposcopy and I'm getting worried.  The reason I'm here is because I haven't had sex in 12 years so the HPV thing has thrown me! 

I'm sorry for those of you who are dealing with this and wonder what your circumstances are now (if you don't mind sharing).

Also, if anyone can give me a heads up on the whole Colposcopy thing, that would be great as 1 thing said "under General anaesthetic" and another said "local".

I know I shouldn't be googling stuff but I'm confused as hell.

My heart is breaking, last two weeks I've been under the most dreadful stress I've ever experienced due to a family member getting arrested.  Sleep and appetite is completely lost. 
I've been feeling sore down there last few days so investigated and I'm a covered in spots. 
I'm not long in a relationship and we haven't had sex for 7 weeks but iI just want to run and hide, end it with him and just give up. 
Can't stop crying  

Thankyou, your post has helped me. I tested positive for HPV (which I'd never even heard of) in Jan '24 & my next one is booked for February. I am sooo scared. My adult life has been particularly stressful. I almost died in a serious car accident at aged 21, which has left me disabled. So this is the icing on the cake....more worries !! I'm 53 now with a loving husband of 17 years, & a fabulous 18 year old son. I'll be honest, there are times I wish I had died because of the pain & I think that maybe I've wished this on myself !! I've tried to put it to the back of my mind for the last 12 months but it's been a constant worry. The nurse at my GP surgery told me not to worry & just keep up with my smear tests. I am out of my mind though. Even more now with my 2nd test imminent !!

Hello, I too have been reading these posts as I have just found out I am positive for HPV. I am late 50’s and have not been sexually active for over 15 years and only 2 sexual partners. The virus has obviously been in me for a very long time and not cleared.

I hadn’t realised that the old style smear tests did not check for active HPV infection, so these posts have helped me understand why I was clear 8 years ago. I went for the smear as I have been having pelvic discomfort and wanted to tick that box off. Coming back positive has battered me, more-so because they couldn’t get cytology results one way or the other due to “lost/inadequate/other” so I’m now expected to wait 3 months for new cells to grow before taking another smear test. This despite me reiterating I have been having problems.

I think the nurses / Dr’s and surgeries need to make older women more aware that the virus can potentially reactivate. I think we assume per the literature that it clears in one or two years. So if you’ve had a clear test, then not had sex between smears, you’re fine. Maybe that’s the case for most people but it can come back and from what I’ve read, hormones can be a trigger, so menopause as well as pregnancy.

I would urge any menopausal women to keep up with their smears, even if they’ve not been sexually active for years. 

Aww,bless you x It's a worry, isn't it ? Personally, it just  seems to be one thing after another for me! I didn't even tell my hubby for a few days, until I'd done some research. At first, he reacted just as I knew he would. It was only when I told him it can lie dormant for 30+ years, that he kinda understood? We haven't spoke about it but I think about it daily.....and now because my second smear test is due, I'm out of my mind !! I worry that my body won't be able to fight it because I'm not in the best of health. I don't eat right, can't exercise. All things considered, I just have a bad feeling. 3am this morning I was looking at it again on my phone, that's how I found this site. But just the word cancer, sends shivers down my spine.I've always has significant pain in the leg I almost had amputated & my back because my pelvis was badly fractured & now have spondylitis too. My brain has just gone into overdrive & I can't help but worry.

Thankyou for the reply. You are right, it is good to chat with other's going through a similar thing.....& not being able to change anything about it. I believe they've only started in the last few years to test for this ? I've always had my smears as required but I assume when I had to have yearly scans in my 30's because of abnormal cells, maybe this was the hpv raising it's ugly head ? My nurse didn't seem concerned & told me not to worry (how silly) lol. She also shared a story about another patient who was sobbing uncontrollably cos she thought she had aids (HIV). We're in this mess so just have to deal with it I suppose. Good luck hunni, chat soon x

Yes, I think they only introduced the HPV part of the test in 2019/20 Interesting you’ve had yearly monitoring scans before, alongside your HPV positive last year, it does seem that it can go dormant and reappear and go dormant. Not just reinfections. My last test was normal but that was pre 2019 where there was no HPV check. I was a bit late to the party on getting smears as I’d always assumed I was so low risk and the negative test reinforced that to me. But understanding more about HPV, I now understand how important it is to get them regularly even if you’re not sexually active or with the same partner. 

Your nurse sounds great! Take care, good luck! x