In most cases, HPV infections (acronym for Human Papilloma Virus) run in a completely asymptomatic manner, thus without causing symptoms of any nature: the body's ability to eradicate the virus before it can cause major damage is extraordinary. although unfortunately, in some circumstances, this capacity fails and the immune system, while managing to contain and contain the infection, fails to defeat HPV, which thus causes symptoms and disorders that are also quite serious. Among the most feared, HPV infection can slowly transform a normal cervical epithelial (cervical) cell into a cancer cell; the key step in this process, which lasts at least a decade, is the integration of viral DNA with the genome of the host cell.
HPV symptoms
Most people (around 80%) infected with HPV overcome the infection within three years of infection without complaining of any particular symptoms or disorders.
Currently, over 120 HPV serotypes have been identified, each with peculiar biological and pathological characteristics; for this reason an identification number has been assigned to each virus (eg: HPV-1, HPV-2 ...).
Some HPVs are almost harmless to the body and do not cause any particular problems or symptoms. About 40 types infect the genital mucous membranes and, of these, about 15 (16, 18, 31, 33, 35, 39, 45, 51, 52, 56, 58, 59, 66, 68 ...) are defined at high cancer risk; in particular:
- Some HPVs are implicated in the onset of cervical cancer (also known as cervical intraepithelial cancer of the uterine cervix): the strains most at risk are identified by the numbers 16 ( HPV 16 ) and 18 ( HPV 18 ), responsible alone for 70% of cervical neoplasms; the same papillomaviruses are also responsible for neoplasms of the penis, anus, vagina, vulva and orofoaringe, which from an epidemiological point of view are in any case of marginal importance compared to neoplasms of the uterine cervix. The infections sustained by these viruses give rise to subclinical manifestations, not identifiable to the naked eye but appreciable through specific tests such as the pap test
About 1% of women with HPC high-risk cancer develop neoplasm of the cervix; from the time of infection to the onset of cervical cancer there is a latency period of several years, quantifiable in at least a decade. During this period, in general, the woman does not complain of any particular symptom attributable to the papillomavirus, which is why the identification of the early infection first, and of the pre-neoplastic lesions then, through pap test and / or HPV DNA test allows the doctors to intervene before the cancer manifests.
The symptoms of cervical cancer can be completely absent, or so mild and nuanced that they go completely unnoticed. As cervical cancer progresses, and the chances of treatment decrease, the typical symptoms of the disease may appear: bleeding after sexual intercourse and slight pain during the same, watery or bloody vaginal discharge, sometimes of unpleasant odor, pain to the pelvic region, vaginal bleeding outside the menstrual period or after menopause.
The other tumor forms related to HPV infection can also develop in the absence of signs or symptoms, which typically occur only when they reach an advanced stage that is difficult to treat.
- Some HPVs are implicated in the onset of genital warts or condylomata acuminata : the most at risk strains are identified by the numbers 6 ( HPV 6 ) and 11 ( HPV 11 ), responsible for the near-torality of the cases; much more rarely the same HPV are responsible for recurrent respiratory papillomatosis, a condition characterized by the appearance of warts in the throat, with symptoms such as pharyngodinia, hoarse voice and respiratory difficulties The infections sustained by these viruses give rise to clinical manifestations, identifiable by the presence of particular signs and symptoms. Warts, in particular, can appear at the level of the uterine cervix, vagina, vulva, urethra, perineum and anus, but also in extragenital areas: conjunctiva, nose, mouth, larynx. Often they are so small that they are difficult to identify with the naked eye.
- The strains responsible for genital warts are not the same as those involved in the onset of the aforementioned neoplasms; consequently, a person affected by sharp candilomas does not necessarily present an increased risk of anogenital neoplasms
When symptomatic, genital lesions - after an incubation period ranging from one to six months - appear as rough, more or less obvious eruptions, circumscribed to the genital area. In humans, warty growths infect, in particular, the glans, the urethral meatus, the frenulum, the shaft of the penis and the balano-preputial groove; in women, on the other hand, genital warts appear more frequently at the level of the vulva, vagina and cervix. Fortunately, warty growths involve pain, irritation, itching and localized burning, of variable intensity, generally weak. Most often, genital warts are so small that they are not visible to the naked eye; other variants, on the other hand, can grow, aggregating and forming small groups of sharp condylomata, which are decidedly more annoying.
Genital warts can also spread orally, in the case of oro-genital sexual contact with infected partners or carriers.
See: Photo of Genital Warts
Let us recall, to conclude, that some papillomavirus strains (HPV 2 and HPV 4 in the first place, but also HPV 1, 3, 26, 29.57 and others) are implicated in the onset of the so-called common warts, which typically occur at the level skin, especially in the hands. See: Photo Cutaneous Warts
