HPV Test for Women

This HPV test is suitable for women who want to understand their risk of cervical cancer. This applies, for example, if you want certainty between population screenings, if you have symptoms that you cannot explain, or if you want to check whether a high-risk HPV type is present.

You can get HPV by having vaginal, anal, or oral sex with someone who has the virus. It is most commonly spread during vaginal or anal sex. It also spreads through skin-to-skin contact during sex, for example through the hands. A person with HPV can pass the infection to someone even if they have no signs or symptoms, and it can also spread despite condom/barrier use.

You can have an HPV test if you are not menstruating and are not pregnant. The test is intended as a screening test and can be performed at any time, regardless of whether you have any symptoms. Keep in mind that HPV can often remain undetected for years.

An HPV test and Pap smear are slightly different. During a Pap smear, health care providers scrape cells from the surface of the cervix and analyse them under a microscope for abnormal cells that could turn into cervical cancer. An HPV test, on the other hand, detects the presence of HPV DNA from cervical cells that are collected using a swab. While a Pap smear can only be performed by a healthcare provider, an HPV test can be performed either at home or in the doctor’s office.

Yes, you can take an HPV at home test with Homed-IQ. Homed-IQ’s HPV Test is an easy-to-use at-home collection kit that includes everything you need for collecting a sample and sending it to one of our ISO 15189 certified laboratories.

This at-home HPV test has an accuracy of nearly 100%. This test is the same HPV swab test that is used by some medical professionals or population screening programs. This is not a Pap smear test, which involves collecting cells from your cervix to check for abnormal cell changes.

Homed-IQ’s HPV test for women will tell you if you are infected with a high-risk strain of HPV. We always recommend sharing the test results with your healthcare provider who may perform additional testing. Additional testing may include a pap smear if your HPV test result is positive and indicated abnormal cells. Through Homed-IQ you can also test for other STI’s from the comfort of your own home. Click here to view our portfolio of sexual health tests.

The biggest advantage of this self-administered test is that you can easily take the test yourself at home. You do not need to visit your GP or the GGD. You will receive your results quickly and a downloadable laboratory report that you can take to your GP for further examination or treatment with medication. With Homed-IQ tests, you can test yourself completely anonymously and perform the test at a time that suits you best. With the Homed-IQ HPV test for women:

• You can test for high-risk HPV types.
• You can easily take the test at home.
• You will receive laboratory-certified results.
• You remain completely anonymous.
• You gain insight into your risk of cervical cancer.

There is no medicine/treatment for the HPV virus itself. In most people who have HPV, the infection clears up on its own over time. High-risk HPV infection and/or HPV-related cell changes often resolve on their own in young people and would not require treatment. To avoid unnecessary treatment and anxiety about a high-risk HPV diagnosis, HPV testing is currently not recommended for very young people. In addition, treatments are available for the health problems that HPV can cause, such as genital warts, cervical changes and cervical cancer.

HPV can be transmitted between any sexual partner, regardless of gender. HPV can affect anybody who has sex with an infected person. HPV can spread through almost all sexual activities including vaginal, anal, or oral sex, or through other forms of close skin-to-skin contact during sex.

Although men get HPV at similar rates to women, there is currently no approved test for high-risk HPV in men. Low-risk HPV can be diagnosed if visible genital warts occur. However, without visible symptoms it is not possible for men to know whether they have HPV. This is one of the reasons why HPV spreads so easily- as often the virus is symptomless. This is why vaccination for both men and women is the best protective measure against HPV.

The HPV vaccine has been shown to protect against the most common types of HPV that cause genital warts, as well as against the types that lead to most cervical cancers. However, there are many types of HPV and the vaccine does not protect against all of them. The earlier version of the HPV vaccine also protects against fewer types of high-risk HPV. Therefore, it is still recommended to screen for high-risk HPV.

Many people who test positive for HPV want to know when they were infected, and who from. Unlike other sexually transmitted infections in which it is easier to trace how and when an infection occurred, HPV infections can exist for years before they are detected. This is because there is no recognized test for certain types of HPV (particularly the low risk strains), as well as no test for men. Additionally, it can be years before you develop symptoms or test positive for HPV, making it hard to know when the infection occurred. This means most people do not know that they have it or that they have passed it on to others. It is important to remember that HPV is extremely common and can still occur even if you have only had sex with one person or used condoms/barriers. More than 80% of sexually active individuals will have HPV at some point.

It is best to not perform this test while menstruating, as this may affect the results of the test.

Do not perform this test during pregnancy. You may use this test at least six weeks after delivery or miscarriage.

Is your result negative? Then no high-risk HPV has been detected. Continue to participate in the screening programme and get tested again if your doctor advises you to or if your situation changes.

In rare cases, a sample cannot be properly analysed, for example if the collection was insufficient. In that case, Homed-IQ will contact you and provide instructions for a new sample collection.

After analysis, all samples are destroyed in accordance with medical guidelines. The laboratory uses only your unique test code and no personal data. This ensures that your privacy remains protected even after the test has been completed.