Hi Cate: I was diagnosed with cancer in December. The biopsy on the enlarged lymph node (where the cancer metastasized) showed that the tumor was HPV+ (strain 16). I asked a lot of questions of the docs at Bay State in Springfield, MA (where I was treated) and at Dana Farber in Boston (where I went for a second opinion). All the docs were great about reassuring me that 80% of the population has the virus and that only 5 lifetime sexual partners are needed to be "at risk" for the HPV virus. (Not many for our generation.) My partner and I also asked the docs about our future sex life, could we keep on as we always did or do we need to change any behavior. We were told to keep on as before. We were also told that when they deal with partners they always assume that both have the virus. They also advised that we have annual pap smears as we may be at a higher risk for cervical cancer (as 40+ lesbians we have only been having paps every other year). Oh, one more thing, should my partner and I ever separate, the doc said we should disclose to a new partner our HPV status. I hope this answers some of your questions. Don't let the HPV status make you feel bad about yourself and your choices. A virus is biology and has nothing to do with morality. Good luck. I hope you will stay in touch and let us know how everything goes. -Michelle