Stanley Tucci detailed his challenging battle and recovery process following a tongue cancer diagnosis in 2017, where his wife, Felicity Blunt, stood by his side with unwavering support.
The 61-year-old beloved actor – who is now cancer-free – recalled the traumatic time in his life following the cancer diagnosis where he went through a 35-day radiation treatment program in addition to seven chemotherapy sessions.
Tucci considers himself ‘incredibly lucky’ to be alive as prior to his diagnosis, he dealt with extreme pain in his jaw and couldn’t quite figure out what was going on with his body. ‘I had a scan, but the scan missed it. And of course, when you think that there might be something wrong, you’re also afraid that there is something wrong,’ he told PEOPLE.
Tucci’s first wife, Kate, lost her battle with breast cancer in 2009. She was 47-years-old, and the couple has three children together: twins, Nicolo and Isabel, who are now 22, and Camila, 20.
Felicity also has a famous sister, Emily Blunt, who is married to John Krasinski from The Office. Pictured (L to R): Nicolo, Isabel, Camila, Stanley, Emily and Felicity.
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After advocating for himself and seeing multiple doctors, he was eventually diagnosed with a three-centimeter tumor on his tongue. ‘They couldn’t do surgery because the tumor was so big,’ he said. ‘It’s a miracle that it didn’t metastasize. It had been in me so long.’
Tucci was unable to eat and dependent on a feeding tube during the treatments, which also ravaged his sense of taste and smell. A few months after his treatments ended in 2018, he slowly regained his strength to eat, which, at the time was ‘just the most exciting thing in the world’ to him.
Tucci – who also shares daughter Emilia, three, and son Matteo, seven, with his wife of 10 years – said: ‘Felicity’s undying attention, affection and encouragement got me through it.’ Pictured: Felicity in London, England, on March 9, 2022.
The Devil Wears Prada star is still suffering a few lingering side effects from the treatment, but has mostly gained back his sense of taste and smell. He noted that some foods still taste ‘weird’ and spicy foods can hit his palate the wrong way, but he’s happy to be on the mend and looking forward to sharing his passion of cooking with friends and family. ‘I couldn’t be with someone who didn’t care about food. I just wouldn’t be attracted to them,’ he said.
Stanley is gearing up for season two of his CNN food and travel series, Searching for Italy, and lives in London with his wife and their two children.
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