Real People Stories – Barbara

GW, Sex life, and treatments

Hi, I am 22 years old and currently in a relationship. I recently got diagnosed with HPV due to GW on the mons pubis (right before the opening of the vagina). There are so many tiny ones, but they are pretty itchy. (This could be due to yeast overgrowth, but I feel it on the surface area, and warts tests show that the HPV GW are it) and I have bigger ones in little clusters on my perineum and near my anus. I got my CA125 levels checked and they are normal. But these viral growths look like dark-raised skin growth or tags. It’s so disheartening and depressing. I am trying to stay positive.

Support from My Boyfriend

I told my bf, and he was so supportive, but I told him we should wait until treated. I told him to get the vaccine. We don’t know if he has it (no HPV test for men). Also, he has no CA125-related type or other symptoms. We only used condoms, and my symptoms didn’t appear until after we had sex. (I’m assuming I had it. It just got triggered?)

Seeking Intimacy Suggestions

Do you have any tips to keep some of the intimacy alive? We are so cute and lovey-dovey, but I feel we know that intimacy is missing, which makes me sad. Any suggestions? 😭

Treatment Options

Also, what CA125 treatments or tests have worked for anyone in similar situations? I’ve read more about removing GW when they are those big cauliflower ones, but what if you have so many mini ones? Would the same treatment apply?

Game Plan

  • Get a Vaccine: Waiting for an appointment with a dermatologist to see what he suggests. I’ve seen cryo topical creams and even natural remedies. (Leave what has worked for you)
  • Fix My Diet: I plan on going on a yeast overgrowth cleanse (this is what I feel triggered the HPV since my immune system was down). Hopefully, that will help.
  • Supplements: I heard people taking supplements like AHCC and zinc. And natural herbs.
  • Lifestyle Adjustments: I’m in college, so the drinking is so hard, but I try to eliminate that.

I don’t know what else to do but pray. My Gyno discharged me and honestly didn’t make it a big deal because I have low risk since they are GW. She’s like, go to the dermatologist and treat them off. It’s super common. But ugh, I feel left abandoned & they keep growing slowly. Or new warts appear. It’s a waiting game. Maybe I would feel better if I was going through this single, but I love my boyfriend so much that I can’t be intimate with him.

Martha

Doubts About Sharing My Story

At my age, I was doubtful whether I would leave any HPV testimony. Many people around me or coming into my life don’t know what I went through for no reason other than that.

Early Life Experiences

As you can imagine, at 22, life has barely begun; we have only recently woken up to it, and most of us are still waking up! I think that “wake-up call” was given to me from an early age…

A week before I turned 18, a friend of mine passed away with testicular cancer. Needless to say, after showing up at the wake, he lacked the courage to show up at the funeral. Today, I wish I had that strength… But I know I said goodbye!

Another Close Encounter with Illness

Shortly after turning 18, if I’m not mistaken, a friend’s boyfriend was diagnosed with leukaemia… In fact, like many diseases, this one doesn’t choose ages, social strata, status… Let’s not even go there! And, even though it was so close, I thought it only happened to others!

The Life-Changing Appointment

At the age of 20, I went to a routine gynaecology appointment, the first Pap smear of my life, a risk factor – being a woman! My life changed at that moment… the pap smear came with unspecified changes.

The doctor with my medical history thought it was nothing, did the recommended exam and my guardian angel gave a hint. The doctor, despite not thinking it necessary, ordered a biopsy of an area of ​​the cervix and a Human Papilloma Virus because she thought the change in the Pap smear would come from it. When I opened the biopsy… the world stopped, the ground slipped away from me, and I felt breathless… diagnosis – carcinoma.

Gratitude for Early Detection

But amid all the bad luck, God was great, and I was diagnosed with CIN I… Cervical carcinoma in situ. This shows how much a routine exam changes our lives, but it hurts! The doctor managed to remove everything and gave me the joy of still being able to think about having children. I didn’t undergo chemotherapy or radiotherapy; I know I only know the pain of the diagnosis and how much it limits us. But we are capable… And despite the girl having become a woman by force… what a force of Nature she carries! Be strong… Fight… And if your body gives you any sign… Take away that fear! If you go early, everything goes a little better!

Marilda

With the birth of my third child, I was called to have a CA125 test and a pap smear routine. A few days later, I received a call that no one wanted to receive, and the result was abnormal. They scheduled a gynaecology appointment, and off I went, afraid of what I would hear. They did a colonoscopy and an HPV variant check, and after a month of returning to the appointment, I was diagnosed with high-risk HPV16. The CA125 doctor gave me electrocoagulation on 3 lesions and a biopsy test. Fortunately, the electrocoagulation cleaned everything up, and I didn’t need to do anything else. Now, I have to be followed up with a checkup every 6 months, as the HPV16 will no longer go away, and unfortunately, I will always be subject to new injuries.

I know it’s nothing compared to many of the cases you read here, but it’s scary; with 3 children so young, it feels like the world stops.

Strength to everyone going through this horrible disease.