Hello Dear Lactnet Community,
I was asked about a pregnant mom with HPV (human papilloma virus), and if she can deliver vaginally and also breastfeed? She wants everything to be natural. The HPV is a kind that causes warts, I'm not sure if it has relationship to the cancer causing kind. She doesn't currently have warts. 
The Human Lactation book by Riorden doesn't cover this virus, but from what I understand and found in the lactnet archives is that viruses do pass through breastmilk, so mom can transmit the HPV to baby by breastfeeding, if she hasn't already during her pregnancy or delivery. But is it still ok to breastfeed and delivery vaginally when no wart is present? I'm not sure. I feel it is ok because it isn't a very new infection for mom so she must have already built some antibodies and with breastfeeding right after delivery baby gets immune to the virus, but still becomes a carrier. Would this put baby at risk of developing warts or other HPV symptoms later on? Wouldn't it be like having Herpes, in which case it's ok to vaginally deliver and breastfeed as long as no lesions are present, correct?
Any information about the HPV virus and it's relationship with pregnancy and breastfeeding would be appreciated. I hope this mom will not have to delivery cesarian or use formula.
Thank you.
Eda K. Caglayan, MS, RD, CLC

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