Topics: Cancer, Women's Health, Health, US News, Real Life, Life, Sex and Relationships, Sex Education
A Florida woman was diagnosed with three types of cancer after her husband gave her a common STI.
Eileen McGill Fox, an American school teacher and mother of four, had been married for nearly 30 years when she learned that her husband had been unfaithful, as per a profile in the Tampa Bay Times.
The 'shock' discovery prompted her to visit her local sexual health clinic to get tested and make sure she was clear of any STDs and STIs.
Thankfully, she got the all clear for syphilis, gonorrhea, and HIV, but when Fox returned to get her annual pap smear exam a year later, she found out that she was positive for Human Papilloma Virus (HPV), with the words 'high risk' highlighted next to the result.
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HPV is the most common viral sexually transmitted infection (STI) in the United States, and there are more than 30 different strains, with some being more dangerous than others.
As per the NHS, cancers linked to high-risk HPV include:
Fox was diagnosed with vulvar cancer two months after her pap smear in February 2019, which was followed by a cervical cancer diagnosis.
Then, in 2023, the mother was diagnosed with anal cancer, too.
Doctors say her diseases were preventable with the HPV vaccine, and she's still undergoing treatments now, seven years later.
Fox underwent a hysterectomy to address her cervical cancer and is currently undergoing treatment for vulvar and anal cancer.
She has also had much of her labia removed, and regularly has painful laser and skin removal procedures on her vulva and in her anal canal to burn away precancerous cells.
Before being diagnosed, she hadn't thought about HPV much since her children were school-aged when the vaccine became available in 2006.
Now, she's sharing her story with the world to make sure others know the risks of HPV and know how to prevent it through vaccination.
Fox has since become an advocate for reducing stigma and wants to spread the word about the HPV vaccine.
In the UK, the vaccine is recommended for children aged 12 to 13 years old and people at higher risk from HPV, with similar systems in place in the US.
Some adults aged 27 through 45 years who are not already vaccinated may also decide to get the HPV vaccine after speaking with their doctor, as per Cleveland Clinic.
She told the Tampa Bay Times: "When I tell people I have anal cancer, I’m like, ‘It is what it is'. “Let’s talk about vulvas and anuses and cervixes. Let’s remove the stigma and the shadow language for dealing with it.”
Adding "If it can happen to a married woman of 30 years, then it can happen to anybody. I’m a mother of four, living a life of work and community service, and then I find myself on the receiving end of this vicious, vicious virus."
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact Macmillan’s Cancer Support Line on 0808 808 00 00, 8am–8pm seven days a week.
