How HPV Can Play Out Over Your Lifetime

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A LEEP isn’t the end-all, be-all of treatment

A LEEP doesn’t get the HPV out of your body. You still have it, and it can come back. There are women for whom HPV causes cell changes, many times in their lives. I have a friend who has had four LEEPs. I have a friend whose lesions have hovered at CIN1 for 10 ten years. They haven’t progressed to the point where she needs a LEEP, but they also haven’t regressed, and for that reason, she gets multiple pap smears a year.

There are several factors that contribute to the likelihood that precancerous cells return, one of which is age. And if the problem persists, your doctor may order a hysterectomy. My friend who has had several LEEPs hasn’t had a hysterectomy because she wants to have more children. But if you don’t want kids, or are past your child-rearing age and your high-grade lesions return over and over again, a hysterectomy may be something your doctor recommends and something worth considering.