Felicity Blunt opens up on her husband Stanley Tucci's 'frightening' oral cancer journey which left him unable to eat

By JESSICA JANES FOR MAILONLINE

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Felicity Blunt opened up about her husband's 'frightening' oral cancer journey as she attended the Bazaar At Work Summit on Tuesday. 

The literary agent, 41, who has been married to actor and foodie Stanley Tucci, 64, for 12 years, revealed that her husband's cancer treatment was 'pretty horrific' and left him unable to eat or taste his food. 

Stanley, who is beloved for his writing as much as his on-screen personas, was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2017 and the actor later shared that doctors found a tumour at the base of his tongue. 

The star, who is now cancer-free, underwent 35 days of treatment, including six rounds of chemotherapy for oral cancer and lost 35 pounds, couldn't eat, and had to have a feeding tube for six months. 

Speaking to Bazaar's deputy editor Frances Hedges about her and her husband's love for food, Felicity candidly said: 'Stan is the same, he loves food. It's well known that my husband went through cancer treatment, and it was pretty horrific.' 

She added: 'It was an oral cancer, and he couldn't believe he couldn't even really speak. He had to have a feeding tube.

Felicity Blunt opened up about her husband Stanley Tucci's 'frightening' oral cancer journey on Tuesday which left him unable to eat (both pictured in 2022)

Felicity Blunt opened up about her husband Stanley Tucci's 'frightening' oral cancer journey on Tuesday which left him unable to eat (both pictured in 2022)

The literary agent, 41, who has been married to the actor, 64, for 12 years, revealed at the Bazaar At Work Summit event that her husband's cancer treatment was 'pretty horrific'

The literary agent, 41, who has been married to the actor, 64, for 12 years, revealed at the Bazaar At Work Summit event that her husband's cancer treatment was 'pretty horrific'

Felicity, whose sister is the actress Emily Blunt, admitted: 'I never really understood how much of our social engagement or our work life is positioned around food and drink.'

'It's amazing how when you genuinely cannot eat, how it leaves you outside of so much. Seeing him recover that, and when he couldn't taste anything, it was genuinely frightening.'

She added: 'We've been through quite a journey with eating, Stan and I, and it's what we really love to do together.'

In 2022, Stanley detailed his challenging recovery process following his cancer diagnosis in 2017 where his wife Felicity stood by his side with unwavering support.

The actor recalled the traumatic time in his life and said he 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. 

After advocating for himself and seeing multiple doctors, he was eventually diagnosed with a three-centimetre tumour on his tongue. 

He said: 'They couldn't do surgery because the tumour was so big, It's a miracle that it didn't metastasize. It had been in me so long.' 

Stanley, who is beloved for his writing as much as his on-screen personas, was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2017 (pictured October)

Stanley, who is beloved for his writing as much as his on-screen personas, was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2017 (pictured October) 

The star, who is now cancer-free, underwent 35 days of treatment, including six rounds of chemotherapy for oral cancer which left him unable to eat or taste his food (pictured October)

The star, who is now cancer-free, underwent 35 days of treatment, including six rounds of chemotherapy for oral cancer which left him unable to eat or taste his food (pictured October)

Speaking to Bazaar's deputy editor Frances Hedges, Felicity admitted: 'I never really understood how much of our social engagement or our work life is positioned around food and drink'

Speaking to Bazaar's deputy editor Frances Hedges, Felicity admitted: 'I never really understood how much of our social engagement or our work life is positioned around food and drink'

Adding: 'It's amazing how when you genuinely cannot eat, how it leaves you outside of so much. Seeing him recover that, and when he couldn't taste anything, it was genuinely frightening' (pictured in July)

Adding: 'It's amazing how when you genuinely cannot eat, how it leaves you outside of so much. Seeing him recover that, and when he couldn't taste anything, it was genuinely frightening' (pictured in July)

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. 

Stanley — who also shares daughter Emilia, six, and son Matteo, nine, with his wife Felicity said: 'Felicity's undying attention, affection and encouragement got me through it.' 

At the time he noted that some foods tasted 'weird' and spicy foods hit his palate the wrong way, but he was happy to be on the mend and was looking forward to sharing his passion for cooking with friends and family. 

He said: 'I couldn't be with someone who didn't care about food. I just wouldn't be attracted to them.' 

What is throat cancer and how many people does it affect in the UK? 

Laryngeal cancer is a type of cancer that affects the larynx (voice box). 

In the UK, there are about 2,400 new cases of laryngeal cancer each year.

The condition is more common in people over the age of 60, and around four times more common in men than women.

The main symptoms include: a change in your voice, such as sounding hoarse, pain or difficulty when swallowing, a lump or swelling in the neck, a long-lasting cough, a persistent sore throat or earache and in severe cases, difficulty breathing.

Some people may also experience bad breath, breathlessness, a high-pitched wheezing noise when breathing, unexplained weight loss, or fatigue.

It is not clear exactly what causes laryngeal cancer, but the risk is increased by smoking tobacco, regularly drinking large amounts of alcohol, a family history of head and neck cancer, an unhealthy diet or exposure to certain chemicals and substances, such as asbestos and coal dust.

Source: NHS 

Emily Blunt