I had a skin colored growth on my clitoral hood in Aug 2022. Last sexually active in March 2022.

2 gynos said it was a skin tag but 1 gyno said it was probably HPV because of the location and how common it is. 

I was not fully vaccinated until recently.

They treated it with TCA in Nov 2022 and it instantly dissolved/fell off with the acid. 

My guess is that they are skin tags...(the 1 gyno who said possible HPV in Aug 2022 has me second guessing everything)…have you seen patients  develop multiple small skin tags suddenly in their groin/genital area unrelated to an STI?

It seems strange for this to happen and the gyno wants to wait to biopsy because they are so small/barely noticeable and my STI tests/pap are negative. 

Thank you for your time and appreciate your advice! 

I understand how once the possibility of genital warts has come up, a person can begin to examine themselves more closely, and more carefully, than they had in the past.  In fact, this is not at all uncommon, nor is it unusual to then find additional areas ( I won’t call them “lesions”) which had not been noted in the past.

The response of the initial lesion you had to TCA was quite characteristic of skin tags.  In addition, the locations of the bumps that you have noticed more recently are all highly atypical places for genital warts to appear, and would be, on the basis of their location, far more likely to be skin tags. 

With all due respect to the gynecologist, who suggested they could be HPV I would personally defer to the dermatologist who evaluated you. Often, the best way forward and situation such as yours is to follow concerning lesions overtime. The proper person to do this, as well as the proper person to perform and interpret a biopsy if necessary, is the dermatologist do you have already seen.  Irrespective of who you choose to follow up with, at this point, I would suggest that the best way forward is watchful waiting.

I hope this perspective is helpful to you. If any part of my response is unclear, or there are additional questions, please don’t hesitate to use your up to two follow-ups for clarification. EWH.

It seems so strange to me that 6-7 micro skin tags suddenly started showing up in my pelvic/groin area but the dermatologist advised the same as you, to watch and wait. I appreciate your advice. 

I was curious though, is exposure to strain 6/11 rare? Or is it that showing symptoms of genital warts with 6/11 is more rare and exposure to that strain is very common if you’re sexually active? 

I keep hearing people say “exposure to HPV is very common” but not really specifically specifying which strain of HPV. 

I was also wondering are early-forming genital warts red? Photos of “early stages of genital warts” online vary so much. Can genital warts appear suddenly over night? 

I’m really trying to avoid a biopsy because I heard they’re unpleasant but I’m not sure if I should be disclosing to new partners while I watch and wait for changes with these bumps.

Appreciate you letting me vent and ask questions. Thank you. 

In my experience, genital warts, rarely change color, and a few of them are red. In addition, it would be virtually unheard of for warts to appear overnight. If this is the case in your situation, that is further evidence that these are not warts.

I certainly see no reason for disclosure of what may or may not have been quarts to current or future partners. This topic has been discussed extensively and other threads on this forum. I encourage you to take a look at them. EWH.

I am going to take my gyno, derm and your advice and carry on since these bumps seem to be skin tags.

I was curious though, I’ve seen a lot of people say that they noticed one single genital wart for months or years and then once they got it professionally treated, more warts start to appear.

Do you think that treating/removing the warts sends a signal to your immune system to fight the virus and triggers more warts to appear? 

If a person does not remove a genital wart and it stays there for years without resolving on its own, does that mean the HPV virus is still active within that persons body as long as the genital wart is present?

Thank you! 

Using highly sophisticated research tools, HPVDNA can be detected in warts and at sites of previous infection long after the infection is no longer detectable by standard  methods.  In such circumstances, there is a small chance that this DNA can lead to recurrent detectable infection in the future. This is not particularly common.  It is certainly not something for you to worry about. 

I hope the information I provided has been helpful. As you know, we provide three responses to each client’s questions. Therefore, with this third response, this thread will be closed shortly without for the responses. Take care. Please don’t worry. EWH.