![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SEI_292618474-dd7a.jpg\")
\n\t\tJeff Bradford had a dormant STI for 30 years (Picture: Kennedy News and Media)<\/p>\n
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\n\t\tJeff Bradford had a dormant STI for 30 years (Picture: Kennedy News and Media)<\/p>\n
When Jeff Bradford<\/a> first came down with a sore throat<\/a>, he assumed it was triggered by renovations to the gym he was working in as a PT.<\/p>\n Two weeks later, he was still experiencing symptoms and had taken to gargling aspirin multiple times a day to cope. So, unable to shake the feeling something was wrong, he booked an appointment<\/a> with his GP.<\/p>\n Doctors<\/a> initially diagnosed him with tonsillitis <\/a>and sent him away with antibiotics. But, days later, still nothing had changed. It was March 2016.<\/p>\n Jeff, now 62 and living in Forres in Scotland<\/a>, says: \u2018I had no fever, so I went back, then a different doctor gave me some stronger antibiotics. <\/p>\n \u2018He also took a throat swab as he said it could be strep throat. He was a bit suspicious of it and took some photos.\u2019<\/p>\n In May 2016, two months after he\u2019d first experienced a change, he was urgently referred for a hospital appointment, and within 10 days, he was seen by the Aberdeen Royal Infirmary.<\/p>\n \u2018I couldn\u2019t see anything but I could feel something touching the back of my tongue, it was making me gag, he says.<\/p>\n One month later, in June 2016, he was sent for surgery. When he came back from the operating room, he received a diagnosis that changed everything: it was stage three throat cancer<\/a>.<\/p>\n That wasn\u2019t the end of the story, though. When he returned for a follow-up appointment one week later, he was told the disease had been caused by HPV16, which is an STI that can lead to cancer, including in the cervix.<\/p>\n At the time, Jeff had no idea what it was, but he soon found out.<\/p>\n \t\t \u2018HPV<\/a> is caught through sexual transmission, it\u2019s normally from oral sex. I was totally shocked it was from that. He said \u201cit\u2019s probably been in your body for over 30 years,\u201d that\u2019s how long it can stay dormant,\u2019 he reflects.<\/p>\n \u2018He said the sore throat I got could have just opened it up to getting a foothold, it\u2019s just bad luck.\u2019<\/p>\n Before Jeff met his wife, 58-year-old Heidi, he\u2019d been with a few partners, and doctors suspected he contracted HPV before he ever knew her.<\/p>\n Looking back on his younger years, he never realised this might\u2019ve happened \u2013 and doesn\u2019t want to scaremonger others, either.<\/p>\n \u2018You just go about life like everyone else. You don\u2019t expect when you\u2019re young \u201cdo that and I might get cancer when I\u2019m 50-odd,\u201d\u2018 he says.<\/p>\n Immediately referred for 35 painstaking sessions of radiotherapy, in August 2016, he was eventually given the all-clear. But that didn\u2019t detract from the ordeal he\u2019d experienced over the previous months.<\/p>\n \t\t He says: \u2018Radiotherapy caused really bad burns. It was like someone took a blowtorch to my neck, it was horrible.\u2019<\/p>\n Now, almost 10 years on, he urges the importance of getting any untoward symptoms checked out. And he\u2019s not afraid to tell his story.<\/p>\n \u2018I\u2019ve got no qualms talking about that at all. Everybody does it, don\u2019t they? It\u2019s a normal, sexual activity with somebody you love \u2013 it\u2019s an intimate thing that couples do,\u2019 he says.<\/p>\n \u2018I would never say to anyone \u201cgive up oral sex,\u201d it\u2019s just a natural thing to do, but it might put people off that. <\/p>\n \u2018I think if it\u2019s not talked about quite candidly, it\u2019ll get brushed under the carpet, and if people are embarrassed to talk about it, they may avoid treatment. It could be easily missed if you don\u2019t push it.\u2019<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tWhat is HPV, and how might it cause cancer?\t\t\t<\/p>\n According to the NHS website<\/a>, HPV (or Human Papillomavirus) is a name given to a collection of viruses. In most people, they don\u2019t cause any problems, but they can lead to things like genital warts or cancer.<\/p>\n The guidance explains: \u2018HPV affects the skin and places like the inside of the mouth, throat, vagina and anus. There are more than 100 different types.\u2019 <\/p>\n There are no symptoms, and most don\u2019t realise they have it. However, it\u2019s possible to get HPV from \u2018any skin-to-skin contact of the genital area, vaginal, anal, or oral sex, and sharing sex toys.\u2019<\/p>\n Symptoms of throat cancer, listed by Cancer Research UK<\/a>, include: Ulcers that do not heal or red and white patches in the mouth<\/p>\n Pain or difficulty swallowing<\/p>\n Change in your voice or speech<\/p>\n A feeling of something stuck in the throat<\/p>\n Other cancers directly linked to HPV include cervical, anal, penile, vulval, vaginal, and some forms of head and neck cancer.<\/p>\n Do you have a story to share?<\/p>\n Get in touch by emailing MetroLifestyleTeam@Metro.co.uk<\/a>.<\/p>\n Arrow Arrow Arrow![\"Jeff](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SEI_292618093-d7a5.jpg\")
\n\t\tJeff was diagnosed in 2016 (Picture: Kennedy News and Media)<\/p>\n![\"Jeff](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SEI_292618082-8db4.jpg\")
\n\t\tJeff experienced \u2018bad burns\u2019 from radiotherapy (Picture: Kennedy News and Media)<\/p>\n
Symptoms might include:<\/p>\n
\nMORE: He thought my vagina smelled \u2013 his penis was far worse<\/a><\/p>\n
\nMORE: The three-word phrase women use during sex that men say makes them \u2018feel like a failure\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n
\nMORE: The unexpected sex act that can make your period come early<\/a><\/p>\n