Survey reveals ‘dangerous’ HPV views

NEARLY half of women wrongly believe they are not at risk from the leading cause of cervical cancer if they are in a long-term relationship, a survey found.

The poll discovered that while almost all cervical cancer cases are caused by human papillomavirus, 48% of those surveyed think they are not vulnerable if they are settled in a monogamous partnership.

However, as symptoms can remain dormant for years and both men and women can be reinfected several times in their lives, being in a stable couple does not remove the risk.

The UK survey also found that 17% of respondents – and more than a quarter of those over 55 – believe promiscuity is the main risk factor for cervical cancer, while around 7% think that if their partner receives a HPV diagnosis, they’ve been unfaithful.

Vicki Bokor Ingram, of Roche Diagnostics UK & Ireland, a pharmaceutical company which commissioned the survey, described the misunderstandings as ‘dangerous’, adding that the ‘stigma’ around HPV needs to be tackled. Another misunderstanding highlighted by the survey is that 42% of women believe they do not need to be screened for cervical cancer if they have been vaccinated.

Just over a fifth of respondents had no idea how HPV, which is passed on through sexual contact, is transmitted and 52% didn’t know that both sexes can be infected.

Only girls were given a jab for HPV but the Government is rolling out vaccinations for boys in a bid to wipe out cervical cancer.