Michael Douglas had a rather unexpected response to his stage four throat cancer diagnosis, which he attributes to ‘cunnilingus.’
The 80-year-old Hollywood icon has been open about his extensive history with substance abuse, involving drugs, smoking, alcohol, and even sex.
Douglas first caught public attention in 1992 when he entered a rehabilitation center in the Catalina Mountains of Arizona for a month to address his alcohol issues. Some reports from that time also suggested he was dealing with sexual addiction, an allegation he denied.
Despite his efforts to distance himself from a sex-focused image, in 2013, he told The Guardian that oral sex was the cause of his throat cancer. Specifically, ‘cunnilingus.’
Though he later refuted having made such a claim, The Guardian produced both an audio recording and a written transcript to support their report.
When asked if he thought he might have stressed his system with “drugs, smoking [and] drink,” Douglas responded: “No. No. Ah, without getting too specific, this particular cancer is caused by something called HPV [human papillomavirus], which actually comes about from cunnilingus.”
The Cleveland Clinic describes HPV as the most prevalent viral sexually transmitted infection in the U.S., which can lead to changes in cervical cells, potentially escalating to cervical cancer.
The virus is also suspected of having a comparable impact on the throat’s cells.
Douglas, a father of three, added in the interview: “I did worry if the stress caused by my son’s incarceration didn’t help trigger it. But yeah, it’s a sexually transmitted disease that causes cancer. And if you have it, cunnilingus is also the best cure for it.”
His remarks coincided with Douglas revealing his unusual reaction to his diagnosis in August 2010.
Douglas shared with the news outlet that he experienced oral discomfort for several months and visited multiple doctors until a friend’s doctor in Montreal identified the issue.
“I will always remember the look on his face,” Douglas said. “He said: ‘We need a biopsy.’ There was a walnut-size tumor at the base of my tongue that no other doctor had seen.”
Following the discovery, Douglas was diagnosed with stage four cancer, often considered terminal.
During an intensive eight-week cycle of chemotherapy and radiation, he opted against a feeding tube, even as the treatment severely affected his palate, resulting in a significant 20kg (45 pounds) weight loss as he subsisted on a liquids-only diet.
“That’s a rough ride. That can really take it out of you,” he said. “Plus the amount of chemo I was getting, it zaps all the good stuff too. It made me very weak.”
Fortunately, two years later, Douglas received an all-clear and has been in remission since.
Meanwhile, Mahesh Kumar, a consultant head and neck surgeon in London, acknowledged that HPV type 16 could be a “causative agent in oropharyngeal cancer,” but expressed skepticism about it being the sole cause of Douglas’ cancer.
Kumar also pointed out that engaging in more cunnilingus would not provide a cure, stating: “Maybe he thinks that more exposure to the virus will boost his immune system. But medically, that just doesn’t make sense.”
Douglas is not alone in receiving such a diagnosis. Frank Lane from the UK similarly reported being told that his throat cancer was caused by HPV.
Like Douglas, the 60-year-old was informed by medical professionals who noticed the “boiled egg”-sized tumor in his mouth, suggesting it might have been caused through oral sex.