Human Papillomavirus (HPV)
Taisha Roman
Human Papillomavirus, also known as HPV, is the most common sexually transmitted infection. It is spread through genital contact (vaginal, anal and oral contact). HPV can cause a number of changes to your body. It can cause genital warts, which are skin colored growths on the genitals or skin near the genitals. HPV can also cause cervical or anal cancer by damaging the cells in the genital area. Unfortunately, these kinds of changes do not cause symptoms until it is very serious. This is why it is important for all sexually active women over the age of 21 to get pap smears.
What to expect from a pap smear
Your doctor will use a tool called a speculum to help him/her see your cervix. She/he will insert a special swab into the opening of your cervix (cervical os). The swab is placed here because the cervical os is where damaged cells appear first. The swab is then placed into a small container filled with fluid which helps keep your cells alive. This bottle is sent to a lab so the cells can be examined.
In the lab, the cells are placed on a slide. A pathologist looks at the cells under a microscope.
![By Nephron (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0) or GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], via Wikimedia Commons](http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3ALow_grade_squamous_intraepithelial_lesion.jpg)
By Nephron (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0) or GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], via Wikimedia Commons
![By Nephron (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0) or GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], via Wikimedia Commons](http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AHigh-grade_squamous_intraepithelial_lesion.jpg)
By Nephron (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0) or GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], via Wikimedia Commons
Low-grade squamous epithelial lesion: This is an example of how cervical cells look under the microscope. The ones circled in yellow are slightly damaged and are known as low-grade squamous epithelial lesions (LSIL). These cells can heal and return to normal. However, these cells can occasionally become worse, so keeping follow-up appointments is important.
High-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion: The cells circles in blue are normal cervical cells. The cells circled in red are an example of severely damaged cells. There is a high probability that these cells will get worse and become cancer. If your doctor finds these kinds of cells follow-up is extremely important!