Syphilis occurs in four stages. The first stage is the primary syphilis. The first symptom of primary syphilis is often a small, round, firm ulcer called a chancre (“shanker”) at the place where the bacteria entered your body.

This place is usually the penis, vulva, or vagina, but chancres also can develop on the cervix, tongue, lips, or other parts of the body. Usually there is only one chancre, but sometimes there are many.

Nearby lymph glands are often swollen according to scientists. This means that the lymph glands, or nodes, are small bean-shaped organs of your immune system containing cells that help fighting off germs. They are found throughout the body.

The chancre usually appears about 3 weeks after one is infected with the bacteria, but it can occur any time from 9 to 90 days after exposure …because a chancre is usually painless and can appear inside your body, you might not notice it. The chancre disappears in about 3 to 6 weeks whether or not you are treated. Therefore, you can have primary syphilis without symptoms or with only brief symptoms that could be overlooked. If primary syphilis is not treated, however, the infection moves to the secondary stage.

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