Последнее обновление: Август 28, 2026

Men ask about HPV testing after a partner has had an abnormal smear, or after finding a lump, or simply out of worry. The test exists, it is easy, and it is worth understanding what it does before requesting it — because the honest answer to should I be tested? is less straightforward than the availability of the test suggests.

Start here: there is no HPV screening programme for men

This was absent from the earlier version of this article, and it changes how everything below should be read.

Women have cervical screening because there is a treatable pre-cancerous stage that can be found and removed. No equivalent exists for men. There is no routine HPV screening recommended for men anywhere, and — this is the part that matters — there is no treatment for a positive HPV result in the absence of visible disease. You cannot take anything to clear it.

So a man who tests positive, has no warts and no lesion, leaves with a piece of information and nothing to do about it except what he should be doing anyway. That is not an argument that the test is worthless — it is an argument for knowing in advance what a result will and will not give you. This page sets that out rather than assuming the test answers the question that prompted it.

Man asking about HPV testing in a urology consultation
The commonest question — and the answer depends on what you would do with the result.

The reassuring part, which was missing

Most HPV infections clear on their own, usually within one to two years, without anything being done. HPV is close to universal among sexually active adults, and the large majority of people who acquire it never develop any consequence from it.

A positive test therefore describes a moment, not a verdict. It says the virus is detectable now — not that it will persist, and not that it will cause anything. Persistent infection with a high-risk type over years is what carries risk, and a single test cannot distinguish that from an infection your immune system is already clearing.

And the point that prevents real harm

An HPV test cannot say when the infection was acquired, or from whom. It can lie dormant for years. A positive result in one partner is not evidence of recent infidelity, and it is used that way often enough that it deserves stating plainly. If a couple is testing to settle that question, the test cannot settle it.

How the urine test compares with a swab

HPV lives in genital skin and secretions, so a swab of the site remains the reference method. Swabs are uncomfortable and many men decline them, which is why urine testing was developed.

First morning urine sample used for HPV PCR testing
First urine of the morning, first part of the stream — collection technique changes the result.

What the test reports

The GenoArray PCR method identifies 21 types:

Knowing the type is of some use: 16 and 18 carry the highest cancer association, while 6 and 11 cause most warts and carry essentially no cancer risk. What it does not do is change treatment, because there isn’t any for the virus itself.

What HPV actually causes in men

The earlier version named penile cancer as the risk. It is real and it is rare, and framing it as the main concern gives a misleading picture. In men the more relevant HPV-related cancers are anal cancer — with substantially higher risk in men who have sex with men and in anyone immunosuppressed — and cancers of the mouth and throat, which are rising. Genital warts are far commoner than all of them and are the usual reason a man ends up in clinic.

None of these is screened for by a urine HPV test.

So what is actually worth doing

Where the test does have a place is in a man who wants to know his status with informed expectations, or as part of a broader sexual health assessment alongside testing for other infections — several of which, unlike HPV, are curable and genuinely worth finding.

Findings that need examining rather than testing

При чрезвычайной ситуации в Таиланде звоните 1669.

Frequently Asked Questions About HPV Testing in Men

Нужно ли мужчинам сдавать тест на ВПЧ?

There is no routine HPV screening programme for men, because there is no treatable pre-cancerous stage to find as there is on the cervix, and no treatment for a positive result without visible disease. Testing is available and can be done with informed expectations; it is not a screening test and a result will not change what is done next.

Можно ли обнаружить ВПЧ в моче?

Yes. Urine PCR shows around 81.5% agreement with a genital swab, which also means roughly one infection in five that a swab would detect is missed. A negative urine result does not exclude HPV. Use the first urine of the morning and the first part of the stream.

My test was positive. What now?

Most HPV infections clear on their own within one to two years, and a positive test describes the present moment rather than predicting an outcome. There is no medication that clears it. What helps is vaccination if you have not had it, stopping smoking, having anything visible examined, and your partner keeping her cervical screening appointments.

Does a positive result mean my partner was unfaithful?

No. An HPV test cannot establish when an infection was acquired or from whom, and the virus can remain dormant for years. It cannot settle that question, and it should not be used to try.

Which types does the test report?

Twenty-one types: fifteen high-risk types associated with cancer (16, 18, 31, 33, 35, 39, 45, 51, 52, 53, 56, 58, 59, 66, 68) and six low-risk types associated with warts (6, 11, 42, 43, 44, 81). Types 16 and 18 carry the highest cancer association; 6 and 11 cause most warts and carry essentially no cancer risk.

Организация консультации

Доктор Соаравее Веерасопоне принимает пациентов конфиденциально в Головной офис Бангкокской больницы и в больнице Самитивей Сирача в Чонбури в 088-022-1445. If there is something visible, that is the reason to come — it is examined rather than tested for.

Телемедицина больницы Бангкока доступна для пациентов, которые не могут прийти лично, включая иностранных пациентов — организуйте это заранее по электронной почте в отделении урологии bhquro@bdms.co.th. Samitivej Sriracha принимает только очно. На вопросы о стоимости отвечает больница, а не этот сайт.

Отказ от ответственности: Этот контент написан и проверен доктором Соарави Верасопоне (Dr. Soarawee Weerasopone), сертифицированным урологом из Главного госпиталя Бангкока (Bangkok Hospital Headquarters), и предназначен исключительно в образовательных целях. Он не является медицинским советом, диагнозом или рецептом для какого-либо конкретного лица, а также никакие советы, диагнозы или рецепты не предоставляются через каналы личных сообщений или социальные сети. Доктор Соарави не ведет никаких публичных аккаунтов в социальных сетях; любой аккаунт, предлагающий частные консультации от его имени, является мошенническим. В случае чрезвычайной ситуации в Таиланде звоните 1669.

Медицинский автор и рецензент: доктор Соарави Веерасопоне (д-р Пом) — сертифицированный уролог, штаб-квартира больницы Бангкока, в урологической практике с 2016 года. Стажировка: робото-хирургия, Мемориальная больница Чан Гунг, Тайвань (2019) · Наблюдение: эндоурология, больница Университета Джунтендо, Токио (2022) · Научный сотрудник и клинический наблюдатель, урологическое отделение им. Скотта, Медицинский колледж Бэйлора, США (2025–2026).

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Больше на Dr. Soarawee Weerasopone — Urologist Bangkok

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