How to Protect Against HPV
HPV (human papillomavirus) is a virus that can pass from one person to another. Getting the HPV vaccine and protecting yourself during sexual activity can help protect against HPV infection.
How does HPV spread?
There are more than 200 types of HPV. Different types tend to infect different areas of the body. This affects how they spread.
Mucosal HPVs (can cause genital warts or cancer)
Mucosal HPV types infect moist surfaces and membranes in the body, such as the genital region or throat (oropharynx).
High-risk (oncogenic) types that can cause cancer:
- Spread through direct sexual contact, including vaginal, anal, and oral sex.
- Do not spread through blood or body fluids.
Low-risk (non-oncogenic) types that can cause genital warts:
- Spread through direct sexual contact.
- In rare cases, they can spread through childbirth.
When low-risk HPVs spread through childbirth, they can cause warts to form in the airway (trachea) or voice box (larynx) of infected children. These conditions are called respiratory papillomatosis and laryngeal papillomatosis. They can cause lifelong problems.
Since these HPV types do not usually cause symptoms, most people spread HPV without knowing they are infected.
Most adults get a sexually transmitted HPV infection over the course of their life but never experience any symptoms or problems. Most infections are cleared by the body’s immune system within a couple of years.
Cutaneous HPVs (can cause skin warts)
Cutaneous HPV types infect the skin. Some of these types can cause warts, commonly on the hands and feet.
These warts spread through skin-to-skin contact.
For example, if you have a wart on your hand, you can spread it to another person through a handshake, especially if they have a cut or injury on their hand that allows HPV to enter their cells.
These types of HPVs are contagious, but unlike mucosal types, they cannot infect mucous membranes or surfaces in the genital region or throat. They also cannot cause cancer.
Can HPV cancers and diseases be prevented?
While there is no sure way to prevent all HPV infections, vaccination can help protect against the HPV types that cause most HPV cancers and genital warts.
Vaccinate against HPV
HPV vaccines can prevent more than 90% of HPV cancers when given at the recommended ages.
On-time vaccination protects people from the most common mucosal HPV types that can cause genital warts and cancer later in life. Vaccination can only prevent HPV infection. It does not treat an existing infection.
- To work best, the HPV vaccines should be given to boys and girls between the ages of 9 and 12.
- Teens and young adults ages 13 through 26 years who have not been vaccinated or who have not received all their shots should get the vaccine as soon as possible. Vaccination of young adults will not prevent as many cancers as vaccination of children and teens.
- The American Cancer Society does not recommend HPV vaccination for persons older than 26 years.
Protect yourself during sexual activity
Because sexually transmitted HPV types are very common, having sexual contact with even one other person can expose you to HPV. This includes having vaginal, oral, or anal sex or any intimate skin-to-skin contact.
If you are sexually active, you might be able to help lower your risk by:
- Limiting your number of sex partners
- Avoiding sexual activity with people who’ve had many other sex partners
- Using condoms every time, from start to finish
Limitations of condoms
Condoms can offer some protection from HPV infection, but HPV can spread during direct skin-to-skin contact before the condom is put on.
HPV can also spread when areas that are not blocked by the condom come into contact. Male condoms leave several genital surfaces exposed that could become infected, including the vulva and scrotum. Female condoms cover more of the vulva, but they haven’t been studied as carefully for their ability to protect against HPV.
However, condoms are very helpful in protecting against other infections that can spread through sexual activity.
Can a person get HPV more than once?
Yes, a person can get HPV more than once. There are many types of HPV, so it’s possible to be infected more than once in your lifetime or be infected with multiple types at the same time. Your immune system will clear most HPV infections within a few years.
- Written by
- References
The American Cancer Society medical and editorial content team
Our team is made up of doctors and oncology certified nurses with deep knowledge of cancer care as well as editors and translators with extensive experience in medical writing.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Chapter 11: Human papillomavirus. In: Epidemiology and Prevention of Vaccine-Preventable Diseases. Pink Book. Accessed at https://www.cdc.gov/pinkbook/hcp/table-of-contents/chapter-11-human-papillomavirus.html on September 3, 2026.
Goldstein BG, Goldstein AO, Morris-Jones R. Cutaneous warts (common, plantar, and flat warts). UpToDate. 2026. Accessed at https://www.uptodate.com/contents/cutaneous-warts-common-plantar-and-flat-warts on September 3, 2026.
National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD). Recurrent respiratory papillomatosis (RRP) or laryngeal papillomatosis. Accessed at https://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/recurrent-respiratory-papillomatosis on September 3, 2026.
Lam JUH, Rebolj M, Dugué PA, Bonde J, von Euler-Chelpin M, Lynge E. Condom use in prevention of human papillomavirus infections and cervical neoplasia: Systematic review of longitudinal studies. J Med Screen. 2014;21(1):38-50.
Saslow D, Andrews KS, Manassaram-Baptiste D, et al. Human papillomavirus vaccination 2020 guideline update: American Cancer Society guideline adaptation. CA Cancer J Clin. 2020; doi:10.3322/caac.21616
Last Revised: September 3, 2026
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