HPV—human papillomavirus—is an equal opportunity virus, infecting both men and women. Men can get infected with HPV, and most do—it’s so common that nearly all sexually active people will have HPV at some point in their lives. It can be passed to a male or female partner through vaginal, anal, and oral sex, or even just through genital skin-to-skin contact.
So lots of men have HPV, but most will never know it. They won’t have any noticeable symptoms and the infection will typically go away on its own. But while most infections are harmless, HPV can cause problems. Some types of HPV cause genital warts, while others can cause penile, anal, and throat cancers in men.
In this video series, we ask four volunteers to test their knowledge about genital warts, HPV-related cancer, and HPV prevention.
Going Further
HPV and Men: “Low risk” HPV types can cause genital warts while “high risk” types, can
cause small cell changes of the penis and anus that can lead to cancer. While HPV-related cancer in men is rare, it is important for men to understand that there are ways to prevent infection.