HPV is a virus that is associated with cervical cancer. If you do not have HPV, you will not have cervical cancer.

Even if you do have HPV, it is important to know what kind you have, because only a few viruses cause cancer. Most women with cancer-associated HPVs will not get cervical cancer.

HPV, or human papillomavirus , is one of the most widespread sexually transmitted diseases in the United States. It's also the infection responsible for causing nearly all cases of cervical cancer.

HPV is not a single virus. As many as 100 different types have been isolated by scientists. About 30 HPV strains can infect the genital areas and may cause genital warts. Among the genital strains,13 types of HPV pose a high risk of triggering cell changes on the cervix that can progress into cervical cancer. Approximately 70% of all cervical cancers are associated with two of the high-risk types of HPV (HPV 16 and 18).

Because HPV usually causes no symptoms, you can have it and not even know it. Some studies suggest that the majority of sexually active men and women in the U.S. have been infected with at least one type of HPV in their lifetimes. As common as HPV is, it is important to note that:

• If you do not have HPV, you will not get cervical cancer.
• Not all types of HPV cause cervical cancer.
• Having HPV does not necessarily mean you will get cervical cancer. In most women, the body's immune system renders the virus harmless.
• Even if you do have a high-risk strain of HPV, early detection and treatment can eliminate the threat before the virus causes harm.
• Women who have never been sexually active are unlikely to get HPV and have a very low risk for developing cervical cancer.

Sexual behavior is the most critical risk factor for getting HPV. So, if you are sexually active, be aware that:

• HPV spreads through skin-to-skin contact, not by bodily fluids.
• Using condoms cannot entirely protect you against HPV.
• Women with multiple sex partners have a much greater risk of being infected than women who are monogamous.
• Anyone with a suppressed immune system is at greater risk of being infected with HPV.
• HPV can be contracted from one partner and go dormant for extended periods of time. It can then become active enough to be transmitted to another sexual partner, even a spouse.
• In a small number of women, the virus can live dormant for years and eventually convert cells on the cervix into cancer cells.

Testing for HPV

There is a test - just as quick, simple, and painless as the Pap test - which  can determine whether you have any of the high-risk types of HPV before there are any conclusive visible changes to the cervical cells. It is called the HPV-DNA test, and it was approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2000 to determine whether women with abnormal Pap tests needed further examination or testing.

In 2003, the FDA approved the expanded use of the test. It can now be done routinely, in conjunction with a Pap smear, to screen women over the age of 30 for HPV infection. Results of the Pap and HPV-DNA tests, together with a complete medical history and evaluation of other risk factors, can help physicians determine what sort of follow-up treatment may be necessary.

Like the Pap test, the HPV-DNA test is performed by collecting cells from the cervix (usually at the same time a Pap test sample is taken) and then sending them to a laboratory for analysis.

The HPV-DNA test is not approved by the FDA as a substitute for regular Pap screening, nor is it intended to screen women under 30 who have normal Pap tests.