The Philippine Online Chronicles

Douglas is now undergoing chemotherapy and radiation to treat the walnut-sized tumor at the base of his tongue. Recent pictures show the frail-looking Douglas, a stark contrast from his cover photograph for Men’s Journal.

Douglas admitted in The Late Show with David Letterman it was his smoking and drinking that had caused the cancer.

Zeta-Jones expressed sadness over her husband’s ordeal saying, "I know maybe I should be stronger, but emotionally I just don't want to see that. The hardest part is seeing his fatigue, because Michael is never tired."

The actor nevertheless told Letterman that with his cancer remaining above the neck, they are expecting an 80 percent chance for recovery.

The 65-year-old actor has been smoking for decades and is going on an eight-week chemotherapy and radiation course.

Oropharyngeal cancer?

Throat cancer can affect various parts of the mouth and the neck, including lips, teeth, gums and tongue. According to Cancer.gov, it is estimated that there will be more than 25,000 cases of throat cancer in the United States and more than 6,000 deaths this year.

The public is not yet actually sure what kind of throat cancer Douglas has as the actor’s people declined to categorize it.

Diseaseaday.com wrote that it might be oropharyngeal cancer if it actually started at the base of his tongue.

Such kind of throat cancer causes persistent sore throat, a lump in the back of the mouth, throat or neck, coughing, swallowing problems, ear pain and voice change.

Throat cancer is highly associated with lifestyle factors such as smoking, alcohol consumption, occupational hazards and sexually transmitted viruses.

Head and neck cancers also increase with age, with most patients being around 50 to 70 years old.

The buzz

The cyberworld has been abuzz with the news with numerous tweets about Douglas’ ordeal in different languages. Facebook users, meanwhile, reiterated the importance of a healthy lifestyle, citing Douglas’ situation. There are even some calling for the actor to visit alternative medicine specialists instead. Even Filipinos have shown their support for the actor with one user saying, “I was so devastated when I learned that Michael Douglas has stage four cancer of the throat. OMG I wish that you will recover! Kaya mo yan! Fight!”

Another Facebook user re-posted Douglas’ interview with David Letterman and wrote, “I love him even more. Listen to what he says when Letterman asks how a guy with advanced throat cancer could look and sound so good. What a pro.” Another expressed his paranoia because of the incident, and posted that he will be visiting the doctor after having hearing problems and sore throat.

One blogger agreed with Zeta-Jones and said funds for research should be earmarked for better diagnostic training.