One of the stars of ABC’s beloved T.G.I.F. comedy block, Dave Coulier, who portrayed the resident comedic guardian in the popular family sitcom Full House, has delivered some shocking news for fans. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Coulier told People Magazine an unfortunate development was announced to him when he went to the doctor for what he initially thought was a head cold and he had been diagnosed with Stage 3 Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma.
Per THR, Coulier revealed that he received the diagnosis in October after an upper respiratory infection caused swelling in his lymph nodes. This lead his doctor to advise him on getting PET and CT scans, as well as a biopsy. Coulier recalls, “Three days later, my doctors called me back and they said, ‘We wish we had better news for you, but you have non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and it’s called B cell and it’s very aggressive.’” He continued, “I went from, I got a little bit of a head cold to I have cancer, and it was pretty overwhelming. This has been a really fast roller coaster ride of a journey.”
The heartbreaking diagnosis would drive Coulier into action as he assembled close friends who are in medicine along with his wife to hit this condition “head-on.” He would also share that his bone marrow test has come back negative, “At that point, my chances of curable went from something low to 90 percent range. And so that was a great day.” Coulier also shared on The Today Show that he had been through three surgeries since he was diagnosed five weeks ago and he has already started chemotherapy, with the chemo treatments expected to wrap in February.
The actor who played Joey Gladstone told Today, “Should be total remission by that time. Fingers crossed. I’m treating this as a journey. If I can help someone who’s watching today get an early screening — a breast exam, a colonoscopy, a prostate exam — go do it because, for me, early detection meant everything.” As the usual side effect of chemo involves losing hair, Coulier said he made a “preemptive strike” to shave his head. He added, “I kind of look like a little baby bird now.”