Michael Douglas revealed misdiagnosed symptoms before finding out he had cancer caused by oral sex
Actor Michael Douglas revealed the symptoms he had that were misdiagnosed prior to his cancer diagnosis in 2010, after claiming it came as a result of having oral sex.
The 81-year-old Hollywood star opened up in 2014, four years after battling stage IV oropharynx cancer - a type of head and neck cancer that develops in the middle part of the throat.
He was just 65 when doctors informed him of the prognosis, but was cancer-free just a year later in 2011, after receiving a combination of chemotherapy and radiation treatment.
But his journey to a diagnosis, like many cancer patients, did not come without hurdles.
Advert
Speaking at the International Federation of Head and Neck Oncologic Societies 5th World Congress in New York, Douglas explained how his symptoms were misdiagnosed 'not once, not twice, but three times'.
He said: "It all started out pretty innocently with a soreness of my gum behind my last molar. And being pretty diligent about my health, I went to see my general practitioner, who thought I had an infection and so was prescribing antibiotics, which, being a good patient, I took.
"And then I saw an ear, nose, and throat specialist, and then I saw a periodontist. But after a number of months when this supposed infection hadn’t gone away despite multiple rounds of treatment, I was pretty certain that this wasn’t simply just a sore gum."
But it wasn't until seeing an otolaryngology specialist who had an 'uh oh' moment, as Douglas describes it, that he was diagnosed with stage IV cancer.
"From what little I knew, this wasn’t good, and I think that was probably the scariest moment I faced," he said.
The star explained that doctors had found a walnut-size tumor at the base of his tongue that 'no other doctor had seen'.
In an honest interview with the Guardian, Douglas - who has been married to Catherine Zeta-Jones since 2000 - opened up about the alleged cause of his cancer.
After being asked whether he regretted smoking and drinking for years when he was diagnosed, Douglas responded: "No. Because without wanting to get too specific, this particular cancer is caused by HPV [human papillomavirus], which actually comes about from cunnilingus."
According to Healthline, cunnilingus is the oral stimulation of a woman's genitalia (the vulva and/or clitoris) using the lips, mouth, or tongue.
The actor said: "Yeah, it's a sexually transmitted disease that causes cancer."
He added that 'cunnilingus' was the also the 'best cure for it' - a claim that has since been disputed by doctors.
How is HPV transmitted through oral sex?
It is estimated that around 10 percent of men and 3.6 percent of women have oral HPV, while the CDC claims that most sexually active people will get at least one type of HPV at some point in their lives, though many are cleared of the virus in just one to two years.
In the US, it is believed that HPV causes 60 to 70 per cent of oropharyngeal cancers.
Speaking to The Conversation, Dr Hisham Mehanna, Professor, Institute of Cancer and Genomic Sciences, University of Birmingham, explained: "Those with six or more lifetime oral-sex partners are 8.5 times more likely to develop oropharyngeal cancer than those who do not practice oral sex.
"80 percent of adults reported practicing oral sex at some point in their lives, but only a small number of those people develop oropharyngeal cancer."
He added that most people who catch HPV infections will be 'able to clear them completely' over time, but noted: "A small number of people are not able to get rid of the infection, maybe due to a defect in a particular aspect of their immune system."
Dr Mehanna said that the virus can replicate continuously in these patients, integrating in random positions in their DNA, which can cause host cells to become cancerous.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact the American Cancer Society on 1-800-227-2345 or via their live chat feature, available 24/7 every day of the year.
Mia Williams