Dear Dr, I understand HPV is common and usually the immune system deals with it. I am worried about my boyfriend of 6-7 years who is from Egypt and I visit there. I am from UK. I am worried if I infected him with HPV he may be at risk of developing cancer. He was a smoker but has quit completely last few years, but since he lived in Cairo I'm worried as on a documentary it said the pollution there was like smoking 10 cigarettes daily. He lives outside of Cairo now but still goes there for family etc. So Im concerned this would affect his immune system in fighting off HPV. I had thought surely then many people there would be getting cancer as a result of HPV if that was the case but then again maybe HPV is not common there bcs most people only have physical contact in marriage, so maybe this case is different. Also recently my bf was waking up with bleeding gums but this has since resolved once he started taking vitamin c. So again I have started to panic about his immune system not fighting off HPV. This is exacerbated by how about a year and half before I met him I did

Welcome to our forum.  Thank you for your question and your confidence in our advice.  While I appreciate and congratulate you for your concern about your BF, I really would not be worried.  First, no where in your post do I  see that there is any evidence that you have HPV.  Second, even if you do, I would not worry about your BF if he were to become infected.  Most people, despite their exposure to toxic environments and the effects of smoking do not have trouble with cancer from HPV.  While his bleeding gums from a vitamin C deficiency suggest that he could take a more healthy diet, there is no evidence that the immune system is profoundly impacted by problems such a vitamin deficiency.  I think you have little to worry about.  EWH
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Thanks so much Dr that has taken a big weight off my mind. I had thought maybe there are less hpv infections in Egypt if most people are only intimate in marriage, so maybe there would be no data on whether living in a polluted place would put you at greater risk of hpv causing cancer. So I can just forget about that?

There are no data on how living in a toxic environment effects a person's risk for cervical or other genital cancers.  I would forget about it.  EWH---

Thanks so much Dr, reading your posts has really helped me get over many OCDs. I had begun wondering if I should be extra careful contaminating other people with my saliva, e.g at home, my mum often only washes glasses with water, and I worry I could give them HPV but I'm guessing it's not worth panicking about these things? I had read in past posts from you and Dr HHH not to worry about household transmission of STDs. If necessary I can repost this if not appropriate here, i did lend my bf in Egypt a herbal nose spray for one use and washed it and used a dettol wipe and brought it home. I then started panicking about someone at home picking it up and using it and contracting hepatitis b (I know hep c is a problem in Egypt and hep b -maybe to a lesser extent?). My bf was tested for hep c for work and is fine but not tested for hep b. My ocd then went into the past wondering about other potential transmissions to people at home and whether my bf could have been one of the people with hep c and their body resolves it (early on?) and whether or not his test in Egypt would show past infection and whether or not i could transmit it. But I'm pretty sure you will say not to worry about theoretical household risks such as using a nose spray! 

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