There has been a lot of sex-related stuff in the news over the last couple days, which makes complete sense because April is STD Awareness Month, and, you know, the S in STD stands for sexually.
A new DNA test for HPV has been much more effective than Pap smears, which means that we might have a fighting chance at beating cervical cancer, which is caused by HPV. Not only is it better at identifying instances of the virus, but scientists say women over 30 could start getting this test just once every three, five, or maybe even 10 years, rather than having a yearly Pap. [NY Times]
If you thought oral sex was a safer option than intercourse, shame on you! Not only can you get the usual STD suspects from mouth-genital contact, but now a study published in the International Journal of Cancer says that the incidence of tonsil cancer has tripled in Stockholm since the ‘70s, perhaps as a result of increases in oral sex over the years. Tina Dalianis, a professor of tumor virology at the Karolinska Institute has directly linked this tonsil cancer increase to HPV. Basically, it’s possible that you might contract HPV in your mouth, and then that could develop into throat cancer after 20 to 30 years. [USA Today]