[Question #11246] HPV worries

15 months ago

Hoping for some peace of mind. I was diagnosed with a single, small, low risk hpv wart on an external hemorrhoid during surgery 20 years ago. It was removed and I never had another. Additionally, i have had a bump in my mouth for many many years.. The dentist always thought it was nothing so I paid no attention to it. It may have been there as far back as the other wart. Although it was unchanged , the dentist recently suggested I get it removed. It came back as a papilloma IDC code B07.8 with no HPV type listed. I realize we have no way of knowing if this is from the same infection. I have been happily married for 24 yrs. My concern is about future cancer risks. Can the infection be eradicated but the wart remain behind? Once again, it was just this one spot in my mouth which happened to be also where my tooth juts out and rubs against it all the time. I worry about my risk for high risk cancers because the wart did not go away. Does this mean my body does not fight off HPV? Again, hoping for some peace of mind. Thank you.

H. Hunter Handsfield, MD

15 months ago

Welcome back. It appears you're the same person who had a discussion with Dr. Hook about your genital wart a month ago. Please note that the forum doesn't permit duplicate accounts. It's no big deal, but from here on out, please stick with one username/account or the other.

Since our expertise is in STDs, we're not really expert in non-sexually acquired warts in other locations -- and oral papillomas are not always caused by the genital (sexual transmitted) types of HPV. I agree with your own statement that there's no way of know whether your oral papilloma has anything to do with your past genital wart. Probably not -- but you might want to discuss this further with your dentist. Or, even better, ask the dentist to refer you to an oral medicine specialist. Such experts typical are associated with schools of dentistry or with major medical centers. In any case, the only oral HPV associated with cancer is HPV16, and those infections involve the pharynx -- the back of the throat. To my knowledge, and oral warts is not likely to be HPV16 or associated with increased risk of malignancy. Here again an oral medicine specialist might have the best expertise; and some otolaryngologists also are experts in these areas.

The occurrence of HPV or of warts/papillomas in two different locations is not known to be associated with any immune deficiency known to reduce the ability to fight off HPV.

I'm sorry this forum can't give you the amount of peace of mind you seek. But I hope these comments help get you started in that direction.

HHH, MD

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15 months ago

My apologies for the account situation. I will be certain to stick with this account going forward.

I very much appreciate your help, Dr Handsfield. This was removed by an oral surgeon who seemed unconcerned about it when the results came in. Since she only told me it was a papilloma, I did not realize , at the time, that meant it was a wart. When I asked about cancer potential, she said it was always possible but not likely. I happened to have a dermatologist appointment today as well, and he reviewed the biopsy results. He said the results were indicative of a papilloma not a sexually transmitted wart/condyloma, and he saw no cause for concern.

I thank you very much. You certainly did give me peace of mind. It’s comforting to know that HVP 16 is normally at the back of the throat, since this was inside my lip by my front teeth. Consensus seems to be that this situation will unlikely cause any future issues for me. I very much appreciate your kindness and expertise.

H. Hunter Handsfield, MD

15 months ago

Thanks for the kind words. I'm glad to have helped.---