I first found out I had cervical dysplasia (CIN I) in spring of 2012. After biopsies, doctors said I'd likely be fine and I shouldn't have any more issues. I got the Gardasil vaccine after that to be safe from future exposure. Four months ago, they found CIN II and did a LEEP and typed my HPV. When I learned it was HPV 16 (the "worst" one) and that I'd had it for over 3 years, I started paying closer attention to the areas of my body where HPV16 is known to cause cancer.

Today, when checking my throat in a mirror to look for swelling or spots after noticing a sore throat, I found a small papilloma (maybe 6mm long, max). The urgent care doctor gave me a routine referal to have a specialist look at it.

I'm here posting because after browsing the Internet for several hours, I'm feeling nervous (as is typical!). I likely have oral HPV16, a leading cause of oral cancer. Is a papilloma cancerous? How about one caused by HPV16? I've had a white spot (about 3mm radius) on my right tonsil for years, just below where the papilloma is, and although a doctor told me years ago that it wasn't anything to worry about, does it become more concerning now that I've found this new growth? Are there potentially more growths hidden in my tonsils or deeper in my throat?

I'm assuming it will be months until I can get in to see the specialist. I'd love some info earlier than that. Thank you for any info you can provide!

Stephanie, welcome to OCF. Im very sorry you have found the need to seek out our group. Do yourself a favor and avoid using Dr Google it will only add more anxiety.

Our members are not physicians or medical professionals. We are just regular people who are oral cancer patients, survivors and their caregivers. Without a medical background even a photo (which was removed) does not help us to diagnose what is going on with you. But even the professionals will have to do a biopsy to know for certain what you have. They can only give you a medically educated guess until the biopsy results come back from the lab.

The golden rule for mouth abnormalities goes like this... Any mouth sore that doesnt resolve itself in 2 or 3 weeks should be checked by a professional. Seek out an ENT who specializes in treating oral cancer patients. You dont want to end up going to one who mainly puts tubes in kids ears. It will likely be at least a week (probably more like 2-4 weeks, but it shouldnt take months) until you can get an appointment to see the ENT, usually the first visit checks your insurance and is a consult. The biopsy gets taken and it will be another week before the full lab results come back. Im explaining this because it will likely take a few weeks until you know what is going on so unfortunately you may have to get used to waiting.

If you want to learn more about HPV, click on any of the highlighted HPV's you see on this post. That will take you to the main OCF pages where there is tons of info about it. You will learn alot about it, such as the odds are more that a man will contract HPV before a woman will and most of the population will have this at one time or another in their lives.

Hopefully what you have is nothing serious. Best wishes!

Thank you for all of the information. I think I was looking for an opinion/diagnosis but you're right: I'll have to wait for the biopsy... and I'll have to learn to be better at waiting . Thank you again.

HPV16 does not produce visible papillomas was a rule. That is the real problem with it, that it can develop inside the tonsil, and other non surface, not visible places and become well established before any discovery of it as a cancer could take place. There are many versions of HPV that do cause the growth of papillomas of different shapes but most often a small cauliflower looking growth that is easy to see. Those are not cancer causing types. (usually version 6 and 11) Papillomas are by and large benign, and while they can cause irritation and if left uncontrolled grow to a larger mass, or in extreme but rare cases cover large areas, becoming a problem, they are not cancer causing. There are some really rare problems that occur with papillomas that I will not scare you with, (I've only seen them over the years in medical journals, never in a real person) but they are like I said rare and they are not cancer.