Dear DOLLY, I had my first pap smear and found out I have the human papilloma virus, and now my boyfriend has a few white lumps on his penis. Is it genital warts or something worse? How can he fix them? Please help! Bec
Firstly of all, congratulations on having your first Pap smear! Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) is extremely common in sexually active people. Your own immune system will usually fight it off, but having regular Pap smears will ensure that you pick up any nasty precancerous changes of your cervix caused by the virus.
All sexually active women over 18 years should have a Pap smear at least every 2 years. However it is important that your boyfriend get himself checked. It's possible that his lumps are not related to HPV, as some guys get prominent glands on their penis which can look like warts and some guys get lumps called "pearly penile papules" at the base of the glans (head) of the penis that also look a lot like warts.
However, the lumps on his penis could definitely be genital warts which are also caused by HPV (usually a different strain to the HPV that infects the cervix). If he has them he can have them treated and it's important that you use condoms to prevent sexual transmission. There is now a vaccine available for some strains of HPV, so you should also talk to your GP about getting this - as it's available to women up to 26 years for free.
