Over the weekend we heard from Michael Douglas that Val Kilmer had cancer and is “dealing with exactly what I had,” meaning cancer of the tongue which Douglas has since recovered from, and that “things don’t look too good for him… My prayers are with him.” He added “that’s why you haven’t heard too much from Val lately.” Kilmer and Douglas starred together in 1996′s Ghost and The Darkness so you might think that Douglas is close with him and that he had Kilmer’s permission to speak about his medical condition. Plus we’ve heard rumors about Kilmer for some time and he’s been photographed out with what looks like an assistive breathing device on his neck. Kilmer has denied stories in the past that he has cancer however, and in a long post to Facebook he wrote that he’s been working steadily and that Douglas is misinformed after he asked him for advice last year about a growth on his tongue.
That was one of the most gracious denials I’ve read from a celebrity. He made sure to be kind to Douglas and he noted that he has sought medical treatment. As Kilmer writes, he’s a Christian Science devotee. I’ve heard that they eschew all medical treatment and there were stories last year that Kilmer’s family was concerned because he didn’t seek treatment until his condition was dire. In the past handful of years the church has been trying to change their position and has encouraged their followers to seek medical treatment when necessary. Their Q&A does not come out firmly against medical treatment and says it’s up to the individual. Without getting too much into that, I believe Kilmer that he did go to UCLA. So why did Douglas say that Kilmer was suffering from cancer and why did he feel the need to say that things were dire, essentially? It’s not adding up for me because I don’t think Douglas would say that without solid information. I hope everything is fine with his health as Kilmer states and that he’s cancer free and feeling well. It’s good news that he’s been working on projects which are meaningful to him.
The photo above is the most recent we have of Kilmer, it’s from 2015. The photos below are from 2013. Credit: Getty, PRPhotos, FameFlynet
