"Full House" star Dave Coulier revealed he has been diagnosed with tongue cancer.
He announced the news during an interview on NBC's "Today" less than a year after completing treatment for Stage 3 non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
Coulier stressed that doctors told him the new illness has no connection to his earlier cancer and that the prognosis has "a 90% curability rate."
Coulier said the diagnosis followed a routine PET scan conducted in October.
He explained that the screening flagged an unexpected abnormality that prompted additional evaluation.
Physicians later identified p16-positive squamous cell carcinoma at the base of his tongue, a form he said specialists described as highly treatable.
"Totally unrelated to the previous cancer that I had," Coulier said. "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. So I said to the doctors, I said, 'Well, did this happen because of the lymphoma?' And they said, 'Totally unrelated.'"
Coulier said treatment will consist of 35 radiation sessions, with the final round scheduled for Dec. 31.
Coulier said doctors are optimistic and added that early detection made a significant difference.
"Prognosis is very good for P16 squamous carcinoma," he said. "So it has a 90% curability rate."
"But the thing that has really saved my life … is that early detection saved my life, not just the first time but the second time as well."
"So I hope you're getting your checkups. I hope you get your colonoscopies and breast exams and prostate exams; they will save your life," he added.
According to the American Cancer Society, the P16 protein is a marker associated with human papillomavirus.
Coulier said his medical team told him the cancer "could stem from having an HPV virus up to 30 years ago," noting their explanation that many people carry the virus without symptoms until it becomes active.
Coulier shared news of his lymphoma in November 2024 after learning the disease was already at Stage 3.
He began chemotherapy soon afterward.
"You hear chemo, and it scares the daylights out of you," he said at the time, according to Variety.
"The first round was pretty intense because you don't know what to expect. You don't know how you're going to feel," explained Coulier.
"Is this going to hit me immediately? Is it going to be devastating? Am I going to walk out of here?"
He later announced he was cancer-free in March 2025.
Recounting his experience, he described worsening side effects in an interview with Parade magazine.
"The symptoms were getting worse and worse with each treatment. So neuropathy, which I hadn't experienced before, started to increase."
"Nausea started to increase. Dizziness started to increase," he recalled.
"They call it chemo brain, where you're a bit foggy — that started to increase. My days of being able to get up and walk around and be active started to decrease."
His wife, Melissa, said the challenges of chemotherapy led to them having some difficult discussions.
"After [the fifth round of] chemo, he was like, 'I don't know if I could do this again.' He was like, 'I'm prepared either way.'"
"'If I die, I die. And if I can stay here, great; I want to.' Those conversations were obviously so tough," she said.
Coulier told "Today" that while radiation differs from chemotherapy, it still brings side effects.
"The doctor said the prognosis is good, but we're going to start radiation immediately … It's a whole different animal than chemo. It doesn't feel as aggressive, but there are still side effects," he said.
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.