HPV And Cervical Cancer- What you need to know
You head in for your scheduled pap smear and the doctor delivers the often
surprising news that you’ve got HPV (Human Papilloma Virus).
You find yourself wondering “How the hell did this happen?”
“How can I possibly have an STD?”
“What does this even mean? Am I going to develop cervical cancer?”
Once the initial sting of the diagnosis wears off, you then start googling the condition and what can be done for it.
Even within consultations in my naturopathic clinic, it’s often a door knob discussion, just before you leave can anything be done for a positive HPV screen or CIN result (changes detected in cervical cells)
So here we are, an entire post on the topic and most importantly what you might want to consider in order to support your body. If you’re struggling with the sit and watch approach often prescribed.
Please note: Nothing in this article is considered to be medical advice or prescriptive. You do need to seek out individualized and specific health support for your condition.
What is HPV?
It’s a virus. WHO has listed it as the most common virus of the reproductive tract.
Peak time for infection is shortly after becoming sexually active.
It’s helpful to note that 80% of sexually active people have HPV. So you’re not alone and it’s very common. Also key point here is knowing that most people never know they’ve even got it.
Helpful to note that penetrative sex is not required for contraction of HPV. Skin to skin genital contact is sufficient to contract HPV.
Screening for HPV only commenced in Australia from late 2017 to 2018. So if you’ve had a pap screen since then it’s likely it was actually an HPV test not a pap screen. They are different.
The other point worth noting here is that once you’ve had HPV, your body’s own immune system will likely work to combat the virus and it will clear it for most people within a 12 month period sometimes sooner.
However, the virus can lay dormant in the body and the reason why it’s helpful to know if you’ve had it is because it is a risk factor in cervical cancer as well as many other cancers.
So to help understand the risk of cervical cancer we want to know:
Do you have HPV?
What is the genotype that you have/had?
Are there any signs of abnormal cellular changes- in other words precancerous cells?
Types of HPV
Okay, so there are more than 100 types of HPV’s. Yep, that’s a lot.
Of all of them, there are 14 that are considered by WHO to be high cancer causing and standard screening in Australia at the time of this article doesn’t screen for all types of HPV.
However, we do screen for some of the types that are known to be high cancer risk.
HPV types 16 and 18 are the ones that carry the highest cancer risk.
Just to give you some idea, one in three women will contract cancer at some stage in her life.
Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer world wide for women.
The cancer council of Australia lists the following cancers to be caused by HPV:
Pretty much all cervical cancers and genital warts
90% of anal cancers
65% of vaginal cancers
65% of vulvar cancers
35% of penile cancers (yes men carry this virus too, and it does impact their health as well, which seems to surprise many)
60% of oropharyngeal cancers (cancers of the back of the throat)
So you can start to understand why it’s useful to know, if you have HPV and also what to do to decrease your chances of it contributing to the development of cancer down the track.
NOT ALL WOMEN WHO HAVE HPV WILL DEVELOP CANCER.
Please know that not everyone who has HPV goes onto have cancer. There are other factors involved in developing cancer, some of which I will go into here. First let’s talk vaccinations…
Vaccination For HPV
The vaccine approved by WHO is for the 16-18 strain of HPV and in Australia is called Gardasil.
It also protects against type 6 and 11 which are known to be primarily involved in 90% of genital warts.
Most young people between the ages of 12-13 have had this vaccination.
This answers the question as to why you still received a diagnosis of HPV if you had the vaccination (not all strains are covered by the vaccine). Also, it’s important to note that with the vaccine 2-3 injections are required to ensure you’re immune and the full protection of the vaccine applies. So, if you missed one or two of the three you may not be immune.
HPV and An Abnormal CIN Reading what does it mean?
As I’ve previously mentioned, the HPV 16-18 are of biggest concern
when it comes to the development of cervical cancer.
This genotype infects the deeper layers of the cervical tissue and can start to cause mutations.
In most cases, your body can manage these mutations, and your immune system will keep it in check.
However, it’s also common where if you’ve had a positive test for HPV, you may also have some cellular changes.
If you’re immune system is compromised, you’re at risk of developing cellular mutations
that stick around and pose a concern.
CIN stands for cervical intraepithelial neoplasia and is considered a precancerous state.
So if you test positive for HPV you will then been tested for potential cell changes in the cervix.
You may receive one of the following grades:
CIN 1 grading is a mild low grade lesion- there is generally a high grade of regression back to normal healthy cells.
CIN 2 grading is a moderate grade lesion or cell changes that are a combination of mild to moderate. It may effect a deeper layer of the cervical tissue.
CIN 3 grading is considered a sever grade dysplasia and impacts more than 2/3rds of the tissue.
So, is there anything you can do to support your body in fighting this virus and reducing your risk of developing abnormal cervical cells?
These things will lower your risk of developing cancer with a diagnosis of HPV.
Avoid smoking
Avoid regular alcohol consumption
Have fewer sexual partners
A diet high in antioxidants like the ones you find in fruit and veggies.
Women who eat a
Mediterranean diet have lower risks of developing HPV, lots of beta-carotenes in the diet,
yellow and orange veggies are thought to help.
A lower exposure to air pollution this one has been researched as being a factor in the
development of several cancers.
Ensure total stress on your body and mind is lower so that you think well and sleep well,
and your immune system functions at an optimum level and you’re less likely to be immune compromised.
This one point could have been expanded out to several however we know that chronic stress and anxiety will have a direct impact on your bodies ability to combat any virus and this one is no exception.
So if you’ve been diagnosed please consider addressing the points above as a starting point.
Stay Across Any Changes in Your Cycle Or Health
It’s imperative if you’ve had a diagnosis of HPV that you stay across your screening with your medical practitioners.
Even once you’ve been cleared of HPV, we know that it lays dormant in the body.
So, even if future tests come back clear, it is worth your efforts to continue supporting your body and health.
Also, it is useful to know what to look out for in terms of cervical changes.
Cervical Cancer what to look out for?
Cervical cancer in early phases is generally asymptomatic especially in the early stages when it’s treatable in advanced stages we start to see some of the following symptoms:
Abnormal vaginal bleeding
Pelvic pain
Painful urination
Painful intercourse
Heavy discharge
Screening and prevention is important.
Dietary beta carotenes lots of orange and yellow, veggies and fruits, women who eat a Mediterranean diet have lower risks of developing HPV.
Higher estrogen levels and oral contraception can contribute to higher incidence of cervical cancer.
Folic acid has an inverse relationship with hyperplasia or abnormal cell growth.
What naturopathic medicines are indicated in HPV and cervical helath?
Green tea
Lots of data and clinical trials with cervical dysplasia- in both capsules and
topical ointments and of course in tea form.
Indole 3 carbinol
Has been studied and shown some reversal of the neoplasia in cervical cells.
Curcumin
Anti-viral, anti-neoplastic, anti-inflammatory.
Vitamin C
Anti-viral, and has anti-mutagenic properties.
Selenium
There has been a study showing that majority of women in the study had a reversal of CIN 1 reading.
Mushrooms
Agaricus mushroom- Innate immunity is one way your body rids you of viral infections .
Mushrooms are very useful for improving natural killer cells in the body.
Naturopath Sydney
As a naturopath I do get a fair few phone calls on this one, and lots of beautiful women come through my clinic with a fair amount of anxiety around a positive CIN result. You have more control over your health than you might believe and it’s all the small things you do everyday that make the biggest difference.
If you’d like to learn more about how to support your body post HPV and CIN diagnosis then feel free to fill out the form below and reach out.
To find out more about HPV and working to support your body you can head across to this post which has some additional information on how I’ve worked to help my patients struggling with this.
Thanks for visiting my blog, if you have any questions about how a naturopath may be able to help you please book in a complimentary 15 minute call with me today.
Alternatively, you can click here to schedule your free consultation on the Potts Point clinic website.