Less than a year after beating Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma, Full House star Dave Coulier reveals he has been diagnosed with another form of cancer.
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While appearing on the Tuesday episode of Today, Coulier shared that he now has p16 squamous carcinoma, which is a type of head and neck cancer. He revealed that he had received the diagnosis following a checkup and a PET scan.
“Totally unrelated to the previous cancer that I had,” he explained. “So in October of this year, I went in for a PET scan, just a routine checkup, and something flared on the PET scan. It turned out that I have P16 squamous carcinoma at the base of my tongue.”
Dave Coulier said, “So, I said to the doctors, I said, ‘Well, did this happen because of the lymphoma?’ And they said, ‘Totally unrelated.’”
The actor’s doctors told him that he had to undergo 35 rounds of radiation. “I’ll be done [on] Dec. 31,” he confirmed.
After being asked by Today co-anchor Craig Melvin about the prognosis, Coulier gave a positive update. “Prognosis is very good for P16 squamous carcinoma. So it has a 90+ curability rate. But the thing that has really saved my life, Craig, is that early detection saved my life, not just the first time but the second time as well.”
Encouraging fans to do cancer screening, the Full House star declared, “So I hope you’re getting your checkups. I hope your colonoscopies, and breast exams, and prostate exams, they will save your life.”
Dave Coulier Previously Opened Up About His First Cancer Battle
During a November 2024 interview with PEOPLE, Coulier spoke out about the struggles he faced while battling Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma.
At that time, he spoke about how a respiratory infection caused swelling of his lymph nodes, leading him to get tested. He was officially diagnosed with cancer in October 2024.
“This has been a really fast roller coaster ride of a journey,” Coulier stated. “I looked at how those words affected my wife Melissa, and I thought, you know what, I’m going to be strong throughout this, not just for me, but I’m going to be strong for her.”
He then reflected on how his life has been impacted by cancer over the years. “I lost my mom to breast cancer. I lost my sister Sharon to breast cancer. She was 36 years old. I lost my niece, Shannon. She was 29 years old.”
His sister Karen was also going through cancer with him. “I saw what those women in my family went through,” he noted. “And I thought to myself, ‘If I can be just 1/10th of a percent as strong as they were, then I’m going to be just fine,”