r/PreCervicalCancer

diagnosed with non high risk hpv, but my body didn’t clear it for 3 years so I’m going to have the leep. I am completely freaked out about the pain and recovery but my dr keeps saying that it’s a superficial layer they are removing only at the beginning of the cervix and that I do not have high risk strain. She told me 2 weeks my life can return to normal because I keep harping on not working out (I am a weight lifter). She said 2 weeks or until no bleeding for exercise, tampons, sex, etc. I am so confused if she’s just saying this so I get the procedure done because all the literature and posts online say 4 to 6 weeks. Can anyone speak to this thank you..

I wanted to share some hope with you all, because I can see how many people are really struggling with anxiety over this.

Last year at 34, I was diagnosed with High Risk HPV strains 16 and 18, along with high grade irregular cells. I was scheduled for a colposcopy shortly after. During the procedure, nothing was visible after the solution was applied, so my doctor gave me the choice to monitor it or move forward with a LEEP. Given my age and the specific strains I had, my gyno recommended the LEEP.

The procedure itself was uncomfortable, but honestly the numbing injection was the hardest part. Recovery went smoothly overall, just some discomfort and bleeding for a bit.

Getting my results was a confusing process. During a phone appointment I was only told I was HPV positive, which I already knew. It wasn’t until months later at a completely unrelated GP visit that I learned the LEEP tissue had come back as CIN 3 with positive margins.

I completely fell apart when I heard that. I had spent most of my 20s making poor choices and had finally gotten my life together. I was in this subreddit constantly, reading everything and always landing on the worst possible outcome. I really want to have a child someday, and I was terrified I would end up needing a hysterectomy.

I started taking zinc, folic acid with B12, AHCC, K2 + D3 and Omega supplements. This was only about six weeks before my next colposcopy, so I honestly am not sure how much of a role they played.

A few things worth noting about my lifestyle: I have been sober for four years, I weight train regularly, and I eat well most of the time following a general 80/20 approach. I no longer smoke cigarettes, though I do still vape, which I know I need to address.

At my follow up appointment, there were still no visible changes. I felt cautiously hopeful but was trying not to get ahead of myself after what happened before.

Yesterday I got the news that my HPV has cleared with no more irregularities. The relief I feel is hard to put into words. I genuinely thought I was heading toward a really scary outcome.

I am sharing this for everyone who is spiraling and expecting the worst, because I was right there with you. Staying informed is important, but please try to hold onto hope too. Healing is absolutely possible, and I am wishing that for every single one of you.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

i have CIN2 in one area and CIN1 in another. i'm pretty upset but at this point i just have to move on. this was my first abnormal pap and i have them done yearly.

my gynecologist offered either doing a LEEP now, or waiting 6 months for a repeat pap. if it's still abnormal then another colposcopy and maybe LEEP at that point.

my first instinct was to do LEEP to get it over with. i know it's more likely to clear out under 25, but i'm almost 28. i do see people talk about sexual issues after LEEP which scares me. i also don't think i want kids, but it's something i've been wrestling with lately so it's not a definite no, and the chance of miscarriages is also concerning in the event that i do decide to have children. so i am starting to lean toward going for the 6 month pap.

i'm curious about what the rest of you have chosen and if you have any more info about pros or cons to doing LEEP, or how your treatment went.

I just wanted to say, I was extremely nervous, stressed and couldn't even sleep last night. I went in and was shaking. I cried to the practitioner before my procedure which was very embarrassing.

The procedure was very quick but I was scared which was the worse part. I have so many tattoos and piercings plus my ex partner destroyed my soul 🤦‍♀️ so pain wise, my threshold is very high. I felt a little pinch/burning kind of sensation when the local anaesthetic was injected. It wasn't as bad as I thought and for me, wasn't painful.

After the local anaesthetic was applied,, I kept talking about my ex (again embarrassing) and the procedure was done quickly, like in 10 minutes or less even. The noise was almost like a vacuum cleaner when she was removing cells.

I went on my own and drove to the hospital. I drove back and even went to the corner shop after to buy bread.

I think the overthinking and build up of what could happen at the procedure was worse than the actual treatment.

I will wait and see what happens in 24 hours and 3 days and in a week.

Currently in bed as I have a day off work today. Watching Stranger things again.

Anyone who has treatments booked, if you are in the UK I would say take Ibuprofen and Paracetamol 1.5 hours before the treatment. The only thing you may feel is the injection. This depends on individual. I didn't feel it bad.

Good luck and hopefully I won't have to go through this again and I hope no one has to go throught it ❤️

Hi, I just wanted to share some good news for anyone who is going through the same thing I was.

Long story short - as many others here, I found out I had lesions that I later learned were high grade precancer. I was booked for a LEEP within 3 weeks and had the procedure done, which was not as bad as I was expecting, though mentally challenging. I was just as worried as all of you. The words “high grade”, “precancer” and possibly “cancer” are insanely scary to hear when it comes to your health. Try to breathe and remind yourself that you are doing the best thing for you health by getting your paps, colpos, LEEPs, whatever procedures you might need.

I got my results back from my LEEP and everything is clear and they are pretty confident that I will be safe from here. I go back in 6 months for an updated pap + biopsy for safety and then at 18 months. If everything stays clear, I am okay to go on with life as usual.

I hope you all get the same results as me. Remember that when people get good results, they rarely come back to post about it. This place is filled with horror stories and worse case scenarios cus people want to feel seen and related to when scary things occur. I’m here to tell you firsthand that I also did not want to come back here after my results but felt it might comfort someone to know that they will be okay as many others have been too.

Xo

I had my LEEP on St Patrick’s day and was told to wait 4-6 weeks to have sex like most people in this thread. At around 5 weeks I started having sex again because all symptoms had stopped for probably around 3 weeks already (no cramping, bleeding, discharge, etc.). We started slowly at first and then resumed as normal for the remainder of that fifth week. Sex felt normal/good each time we slept together, until maybe the end of that week when I started having pain near my vaginal entrance and stomach cramping during sex. It was so uncomfortable I was losing all lubrication and needing to stop him midway through. I figured we went a little too hard (we did have sex multiple times a day for that week because we had been eager to start again lol). We took a break for a few days and tried again, but now every time we have sex I feel numb down there. It’s like I can feel the pressure of him inside of me but none of the pleasurable sensations. Has anyone experienced this? I’m freaking myself out that I somehow injured myself and caused this reaction since it felt completely fine at first and then took a sudden downturn. It’s been about two weeks of this now and I’m worried it won’t return to normal.

Wow. Im blown away at reading all the comments here about getting leeps ect with general Anasthesia.

I'm in Winnipeg Canada and they did not offer me that at all. Everyone i know has just done it in office very quick.

Wondering what country's its prevalent to do under GA?

Last year, I had an abnormal pap for the second year in a row. The first year it was ASCUS w/ HPV and the second year it turned out to be HSIL w/ HPV. We did a LEEP and it turned out to be CIN 2 with negative margins. Fast forward a year, I just did my pap and results came back normal and no HPV!

Just wanted to share this because I know how stressful this process can be and sometimes all we’re looking for are some reassuring experiences since we tend to read so much of the negative. Hang in there everyone!!

I had my first pap post-LEEP and have come up negative for HPV for the first time in years!!!!!!!

Background - I had my first colpo in 2022. I had been testing positive for "HPV Other High Risk" (not 16 or 18) since 2018 or 19. That colpo came up "no CIN". Had annual paps and another colpo in October 2025 that came up CIN 2-3. I had my LEEP in November 2025 and had negative margins (yay). 6 months later and I just had my first pap since my LEEP. My doctor informed me that while LEEPs aren't a cure for HPV, many find that it does clear the virus. Luckily, that was the case for me. I got my results back and am negative for 16, 18 and other high risk HPV.

I could not be more relieved. I know it's always possible it can come back, but I know many in this group can relate to year after year after year of coming up positive for HPV despite all your best efforts. Just wanted to share a hopeful, positive story. Sometimes things turn out alright, ya'll! <3 Now back to annual paps and if I'm clear for 3 years, then I can go back to paps every 3 years.

I had the leep procedure on 4/25/26.

My boyfriend and I were Intimate tonight 5/8/26 for the first time since the procedure.

Mentally and emotionally I was ready.

I was physically sensitive.

Immediately after I took 800mg of ibuprofen.

I had A LOT of lower abdominal cramping and lower back pain for about an hour.

I can still feel it, but it isn't as bad.

Teeny tiny bit of spotting fresh blood.

I should've waited a little longer I think.

I don’t know if I should get a keep. I’ve had abnormal pap for 2 to 3 ish years now. I don’t know if it’s the right move because I talked to the doctor and she said that the kind that I have it’s less than a 15% chance that it will turn into cervical cancer, but given the nature of the virus, there’s no guarantee that the abnormal cells are not gonna spread overtime and then I would be doing an even bigger leap procedure, but the abnormal cells could still grow back at any time if the virus doesn’t clear which it hasn’t cleared in years. So she said she’s not knocking on my door like I have to get it done right now, but the benefit of getting it done is that the abnormal cells will be gone so that hopefully my cervix returns back to normal and I decreased the viral load so I can’t spread it for when I date anybody, but I could still be HPV positive because the virus lays dormant it only shows up negative when your viral load is extremely low, but it could still come back as positive at any point in the future. I read online that it takes six weeks to recover, and women were saying they never felt anything during intercourse ever again because it took all the nerve endings off and they had horrible experiences and it still came back and so that made me really nervous, but she said that that’s probably for women who had more impacted areas and my life should return back to normal in two weeks (exercise, intercourse pain free etc), but who can you really believe here because they always downplay everything. She said they are only going 2 mm deep to scrape it off and in one area the opening of the cervix so she said they’re not even touching the whole thing and she said it’s classified as superficial. Advice please!

I had a LEEP procedure done on April 8th and during that time I was on my period. Since then I’ve bled everyday, although it’s more of a bloody discharge by now and has been for about two weeks. Except I think I got my period on Tuesday this week because I had some cramping and more bleeding. But the bleeding wasn’t as much as my usual periods and it only lasted for two days until I got stuck with the bloody discharge again. So it didn’t behave like my usual periods which I get isn’t uncommon after a LEEP?

Anyways, what I wanted to discuss is sex. I’m in a long term relationship with my boyfriend and we’ve always had an active sex life during all our years together. This is the longest we’ve gone without having sex and we’re getting desperate. I’m a pretty anxious person regarding my health and I don’t want to do anything that could jeopardise my heeling. But it’s been a month and my doctor said not to put anything up there for 4 weeks. But reading online it usually says 4-6 weeks or until the bleeding has stopped but it feels like every source is different and what women are told isn’t consistent so I’m confused. When is it really safe for me to have sex again? And when did you have sex again after a LEEP?

Hi all! After an abnormal pap smear and a colposcopy, I was informed I have HPV and CIN2, and it has been recommended that I have a LEEP procedure. I have been referred to a clinic to have the LEEP procedure and have a consult coming up.

The only people I have shared this information with is my partner (who has been very supportive) and my counselor. I would typically tell my close friends and family about a medical diagnosis / medical procedure like this, but am feeling shame around the HPV and CIN2 diagnosis. If you have shared your diagnosis / experience with the LEEP with your family / friends, how did it go? Any tips? If you did not, do you have any regrets?

Overall this experience feels lonely, however I am thankful for all of the very helpful information on here and for the experiences that others have shared here.

Hi there

31/F/USA

Diagnosed with HSIL (HPV+ not 14/16)
I have a colp scheduled for may 28th.

I was reading some threads where people got referred straight to LEEP after their pap.

I understand majority of HSIL is CIN2/3 so my next step would be LEEP anyway. I saw someone mention their pap showed CIN3 and they went to LEEP. I didn’t think a pap could tell you that info and that’s the point of the Colposcopy?

I have a high deductible and worried a bit about the cost of everything so if anyone can tell me their experience and why they skipped the colposcopy, was it your choice or the doctors?

Im not nervous about the procedures and more worried about cost and results ofc.

Thanks!

I had a LEEP 6 months ago, and everything seemingly went fine. I had a bit of a longer recovery then I've seen other peeople report, felt unwell for a few months after the procedure, some extra liquid discharge that smelled a little different, but not terrible, just like me but stronger. I thought that I was still healing and everything was normal.

Well, I go into my 6 month check-up colposcopy today, and the first thing my doctor says to me when she puts the speculum in is

'there is some gauze in here'

My doctor and the nurses went silent, all I could say was 'what the fuck?'. She asked me if I ever put any gauze inside myself, I told her I don't even own any gauze, and I haven't used tampons for the last 6 months to give myself time to heal. I kept asking 'how could that be inside me? It must have been inside since the LEEP, right?' none of them would say anything, either they were too shocked or they were worried I would cause a scene or something?

She cleaned out the gauze, rinsed me out, said 'I cleaned the area really well' and said everything looked normal, did the colposcopy and biopsy, and sent me on my way.

I didn't even know what to think or do during my appointment, it's kind of hard to think when they are scraping and biopsying you, but now that I'm at home thinking about it, I'm really angry! And kind of scared too! Do I need to be worried about an infection, should I be taking a precautionary course of antibiotics? Has this happened to anyone else? Should I be worried? What should I do?

I recently had a Pap smear in March. I go regularly, and my last one before that was in January 2025. I’m not sure if they tested me for HPV at that time, but my doctor decided to repeat the test this March. I’m 33 years old Female.

The results came back abnormal with some dysplasia. On Monday, I had my first colposcopy, and they took two biopsies. They told me they plan to do laser therapy to remove the abnormal cells. They also said they would provide the HPV vaccine. Normally it’s paid out of pocket, but because they performed biopsies and treatment, the clinic covers it, which is great.

I just wanted to get a second opinion — is this standard practice?

this is also my first ever abnormal Pap, and the doctor didn’t tell me what stage or anything just basically I went in for a colposcopy and he said there’s some lesions that appear white and we’re doing laser therapy.

I’ve posted here once before - I had an abnormal pap in Dec, a colposcopy in Feb, cold knife cone (CKC) in March. CKC had clear margins, but I have AIS. I don’t know all the other versions of this, but my understanding is that AIS is the more advanced/aggressive form of pre cancer, and that mine (all?) are past the cervix into the canal as opposed to on the surface/vaginal side.

Recovery from CKC was fine. Minimal pain, just a lot of charcoal looking gunk coming out, which is apparently from the silver nitrate used to cauterize. The biggest issue I had was getting raw skin from wearing a pad for so many days. If you don’t already have period underwear, get some and get more pairs! It saved me from having to wear pads for weeks on end.

Onto next steps - I had my first consult with the gyno oncologist this week, who told me that my CKC didn’t leave enough cervix to do another one if needed down the line, and that she’d recommended the hysterectomy. I have two kids and know that I don’t want to have any more, so that’s lucky, but I don’t want surgery if it isn’t necessary. She described the regular monitoring for years on end, but that there’s risks of skip lesions so it’s possible more AIS is lurking in my uterus now or could show up later. When I asked for stats, she kind of skirted the question so I don’t have a great sense of likelihood of clearing it on my own.

I think I’m leaning towards the hysterectomy, because it seems smart in this case. But is there something I’m not considering? I’m scared of the recovery and the possibility of something getting damaged in the process, but the cancer risk for AIS seems worse.

Similar scenario to anyone else? Thoughts?

I had my leep 2 weeks back. Light spotting for few days. 6 days after I got my period. After that was over I had just very watery light pink discharge with specks/ coffee grounds.
This evening, after I did some stretches, I started having bright red blood and a few small clots in the toilet. Bit worried cos I wasn’t expecting this. I can feel my cervix too (might be hyper aware) but it is kind of stinging. Could this be the scab falling? Haven’t noticed it at all so far, not sure what to expect.

(PSA: This is a lighthearted rant to keep me from losing the only two marbles I have left in my brain.)

I’ve been lurking here for a bit and finally decided to share my very long, very persistent...I am talking 8 years y'all... cervical saga (and ongoing, will update as this all goes down). Mainly to have some cheerleaders, see others experiences...or be that post you come across in 5 years digging for people with the same frustration.

My first abnormal pap came back in 2019 as LSIL/CIN1. At the time, I was basically told, “no big deal, super common, we’ll just keep an eye on it.” Cool, love that for me.

...and we have continued to “just keep an eye on it” for years. Since it was only CIN1, no further checks have been proposed until now.

Since then, my results have been the same CIN1/LSIL - Negative HPV. Never showing that it has ever progressed (which is good!)… but also never gone away (which is annoying). I literally think my cervix chose a personality and refuses to grow out of it. Immature if you ask me.

At one point, I was told that having a baby could act like a “hard reset” for your cervix, so of course I thought, “perfect, problem solved.” Jokes on me… I had my "prize-catch" sized baby in 2023 and it said "absolutely not, same settings as before except you might pee yourself occasionally".

A few other things about my situation:

• I’ve changed doctors a couple of times over the last decade going from local health department, to certified crazy lady, to the sweetest old man ever who is never allowed to retire. He (who I started seeing when I was pregnant in 2022) has honestly been the most helpful and thorough.
• But despite all this time, I was never offered a colposcopy… until now. We’ve basically been in “wait and watch” for 8 years.

At this point I feel like I’m in on medical daytime soap opera that should’ve been cancelled 3 seasons ago.

TLDR: WTF... Just kidding. But here's the timeline based on results I can find (worded based on how they show on the paper):

2018 (20 years old): LSIL (Labcorp)

2019: "LSIL Encompassing HPV/CIN1" (but only specified it WASN'T HPV 16 or 18). (Labcorp)

2020: LSIL - Neg HPV (Labcorp)

2021: LSIL - Neg HPV (Quest Diagnostics)

2023: LSIL/CIN1 (2 months after having baby) Neg HPV (Quest Diagnostics)

2025: LSIL (Cunningham Pathology)

April 14 2026 (28 years old): "(LSIL), a more advanced lesion may be present. Negative HPV 6/7" (Quest Diagnostics)

******GOING IN FOR A COLPOSCOPY MAY 11TH, 2026! I will keep you all updated.

Not looking for medical advice, just genuinely curious:
Has anyone else had persistent CIN1/LSIL for THIS DAMN LONG long? Like… 5+ years? 8 years?? Do some cervixes just commit to the bit forever?? If so, have you decided to just let these cells hang out rent free until something does happen? Or did you go further than a colp?

Thanks for reading the memoir of my cervix. I tried to keep this lighthearted, as I know this can be somewhat of a stressful experience for some! I am just at the point of annoyance that it's lasted this dang long. I'll post along the remainder of my journey (which based on the track record so far...y'all will probably just get a yearly "SURPRIZE! Still LSIL" update. Maybe I just make it a Colposcopy Anniversary Reddit family tradition?)