Dave Coulier is battling cancer — again.
The “Full House” actor, 66, revealed Tuesday that he’s been diagnosed with tongue cancer, several months after announcing he had beaten his battle with Stage 3 non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
“To go through chemotherapy and feel that relief of whoah, it’s gone, and then to get a test that says, well now you’ve got another kind of cancer … it is a shock to the system,” Coulier said on “Today.”
Dave Coulier reveals he has cancer on “Today.” Today/NBC
Dave Coulier sharing his cancer diagnosis on “Today.” Today/NBC
“A couple of months ago, I had a PET scan, and something flared on the scan,” he explained. “The doctor said, ‘We don’t know what it is, but there’s something at the base of your tongue.’”
Coulier’s doctor performed a biopsy which initially didn’t detect cancer, but when the actor got a PET scan in October, he learned the growth on his tongue had flared again and grown.
Coulier went to an ear, nose and throat oncologist, got a CT scan and an MRI, and underwent another biopsy, which confirmed he had early stage P16 carcinoma, or oropharyngeal tongue cancer.
Dave Coulier visits SiriusXM Studios on March 2, 2016 in New York City. Getty Images
Dave Coulier in the hospital during his cancer treatment. dcoulier/Instagram
The cast of “Full House.” Courtesy Everett Collection
“They said it’s totally unrelated to my non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. This is a new cancer. … I said, ‘Are you kidding me?’” he said on “Today.”
“They said it could stem from having an HPV virus up to 30 years ago. A lot of people carry the HPV virus, but they said mine activated and turned into a carcinoma,” Coulier added.
The “Muppet Babies” star confirmed that his throat cancer was discovered “early enough” and is “very treatable.” He’s undergoing 35 treatments in total, Monday to Friday, until Dec. 31.
Dave Coulier attends 90s Con in Daytona Beach, Florida in Sept. 2024. Getty Images
John Stamos shaving Dave Coulier’s head. Instagram/johnstamos
“I get to start the new year saying, I finished radiation yesterday! It’s kind of serendipitous,” he shared.
Coulier revealed that he’s experiencing “side effects” from treatment including nausea, “radiation brain,” and pain on the left side of his face and tongue where the tissue was removed for the biopsy.
He also opened up about how being diagnosed with two cancers in one year has taken a toll on him.
“It’s emotional. It’s psychologically draining. It’s also a big drain to my wife, Melissa, which is the biggest drain on me, seeing how this affects her,” he said.
Dave Coulier with his wife Melissa. melissacoulier/Instagram
Melissa Bring and Dave Coulier at the TV Land Icon Awards in April 2016. FilmMagic
Coulier added, “The silver lining here is that I had cancer, which helped me detect my other cancer. It seems crazy to be making that statement, but it’s true. Had I not gone in and listened to my doctors and made sure that I got that PET scan to follow up, we would have never found this carcinoma … and I could be in a world of hurt. This could have progressed immensely, and I would be in trouble.”
The comedian was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in October 2024, and he announced that he was cancer-free on April 1.
Dave Coulier undergoing cancer treatment in the hospital. dcoulier/Instagram
During an interview with Parade magazine in March, Coulier’s wife, Melissa Bring, revealed that he was “prepared” to die after his fifth round of chemo.
“I think everybody’s mind goes there,” Coulier told the magazine. “It’s part of the reality of life. Like, ‘Wow, this is really serious’ and ‘What’s the worst that could happen?’ I’ve seen it so often in my family.”