Christine,

Thank you for the suggestion. I just sent my letter to the op-ed page of The Inquirer. I'll let you know if it gets published.

Jill, my heart goes out to you. I'm so very sorry.
I hope your email strikes a chord in those people(KISS 108?)

Well, below is the text of my second post yesterday on the NY Daily News website. But let me tell you, I ain't going back there. It's like visiting a sewer. I am gobsmacked by some of the posts.

"I hope Michael Douglas and his family know that there are many, many thousands of people around the world who applaud his courage. One thing is absolutely certain - he has saved lives by bringing this issue to the public's attention, if it leads to an increase in vaccination rates for boys and girls.

Stop and think of the service he has done - he didn't have to go public but wants it known that this is a preventable cancer, which can be vaccinated against and which should be screened for.

The majority of women who have been diagnosed with cervical cancer have been exposed to HPV, through sexual intercourse, yet we don't rush to humiliate them.

Let's grow up and leave our adolescence behind and have an adult discussion about this health issue. Get your children vaccinated, and the next time someone makes a joke about Mr Douglas be big enough to say, yes well he's made me stop and think about my own kids health.

I applaud his courage - and thank him for putting himself so uncomfortably in the spotlight."

Nicely said.

Great letters Anita, Jill and Teresa. Thank you for speaking up on our behalf.

Nicely timed and played. I think MD can handle himself, but his children and the abuse they'll deal with was the first thing I thought of, I feel for them. Totally understand why he kept this on the qt, yet just following the breadcrumbs of his past comments indicated this was an HPV 16+ tumor.

It's been my point of view that HPV, like HIV, strikes fear, then stages to "not me" before swiftly moving to late night tv ridicule. As this story morphs, recognize that so much of the commentary comes from ignorance and stupidity-by-choice.

I have been avidly following the Michael Douglas story in the news for the last few days. Like many of you, I am very pleased that this has raised awareness of oral cancer and the HPV link. I am viewing these stories from the "other side of the pond" and thought you might want to read this article from The Sun - which I find refreshingly truthful, factual and without the sneering, stupid innuendos of many other tabloid newspapers.


http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepag...-oral-sex-cancer-as-Michael-Douglas.html

Great work Brian, and thanks too to Kenswife, Anita and Teresa for all their efforts.

Has anyone noted an increase in members? I don't know what it was when the article came out, but yesterday it was 8915, today it's 8921.

[quote=Brian Hill]This is probably not going to be available until tomorrow afternoon. I did 34 interviews today in the media, on Iive radio in local markets like St. Louis, and had more conversation with journalists than I could count, giving them background information on HPV and oral cancer. I literally started talking at 5 in the morning and did not get off the phone till 6 tonight. Natalie at the office got the callers in a queue, and I started working each one. What a day�. my voice is gone. The media people were all pretty good, some were just looking for a quick factoid, some wanted strong background that took lots of time to get them to understand things, and some wanted just referrals to good doctors to get on their TV shows. LONG day, but a good day for the cause.

As we all saw today, my grandfathers adage that the "masses are asses" still is true. The comments from the general public in most of this are probably why Douglas is backpedaling on his statement about HIS cancer being HPV+, who would have guessed it would have blown up Google and the social media world when he gave one simple interview. Allen who is his gatekeeper put out the release stating that he didn't mean HIS cancer, but this is obviously not what he said when he did the original interview.

I think his entire team is overwhelmed by the public shitstorm this opened up. When I talk about my sex life on TV only my wife cringes and gives me crap, 90 % of the whole world is giving him shit. This is all really too bad. We have a celebrity advocate that was willing to stick his neck out, and what happens. Idiots happen.[/quote]

Has the interview come out yet? I've been side tracked by my husbands immune system crashing; today was the 1st chance I had to start reading the links.

[quote=Brian Hill]By the by OCF is getting slammed with interview request from the media and for backgrounder info in the disease and HPV. The interviews have not stopped since 4 AM. People Magazine, Time CNN, FOX news etc. So we are really getting lots of play from a this. I hope that Michael realizes that he is changing the world and wants to own this, not back up from it.[/quote]

If I'm reading this story Michael Douglas pleased that oral sex story raised public awareness right; he's still denying what he said?

I'm disappointed (but not surprised) that this was not done better. He had a chance to educate people with facts. I've followed him since his diagnosis & feel he could have done much more for oral cancer.

People Magazine Michael Douglas Clarifies Remarks About Cancer and Oral Sex

Decent article in today's New York Times. Comments are moderated, fyi, so perhaps better than in some other papers.

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/06/10/oral-cancer-sneaks-up/