Stanley Tucci ‘Completely Exhausted’ After Cancer Treatment ‘Burned Out’ His Thyroid: ‘Can’t Think, Can’t Move'

Stanley Tucci is detailing an alarming side effect of his past cancer treatment. 

The 64-year-old actor was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2017 after a tumor was found at the base of his tongue. He was treated at the time with radiation and chemotherapy.

The Conclave star — who is in remission — appeared on the March 18 episode of David Tennant’s podcast and spoke about the lasting effects on his health. He recalled noticing changes in his energy levels last year while filming his food and travel series, Searching For Italy.

“I would be so tired in the afternoon, like completely exhausted by one o’clock,” he recalled. “I was like, ‘Something’s wrong with me.’ Finally, I had a blood test and I was like, ‘I know something’s f—ing wrong with me.’ And my thyroid was non-functioning.”

The thyroid is a small, butterfly-shaped endocrine gland located in the front of the neck that makes and releases certain hormones. Its main function is to control metabolism. 

Tucci said he initially believed his thyroid not functioning was caused by stress, but doctors noted that his cholesterol levels were really high before learning the real issue.

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"What happened was because I had radiation six, seven years ago, it burned out my thyroid," he shared.

Tucci said that his oncologist in New York told him that this is a side effect that “sometimes” just happens later down the line. He admitted that the explanation gave him some relief, knowing that it wasn’t some "hideous" new diagnosis.

The Devil Wears Prada star revealed that he now has to take a synthetic thyroid hormone pill and will undergo additional blood testing to figure out the best way to treat the issue. However, his health is still not 100%.

“I still get tired in the afternoon,” he admitted. “Literally, you can’t think, you can’t move…and once I started taking the pill, it made a huge difference.

“But I want to get back to where I was,” the actor continued. “It is normal and especially now I’ve just turned 64. I mean, there are times when I don’t want to do f—ing anything.”

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In October 2021, Tucci first revealed he was diagnosed with cancer in his book, Taste: My Life Through Food. He told The New York Times that the experience of undergoing high-dose radiation and chemotherapy to eliminate the tumor was "horrible."

Throughout the weeks of radiation, Tucci lost his appetite, developed vertigo and ulcers in his mouth and started having trouble tasting his food. Anything he consumed tasted like cardboard "slathered with someone's excrement," Tucci said, and he worried he would never be able to taste again, even more than he feared dying.

"I mean, if you can't eat and enjoy food, how are you going to enjoy everything else?" he said.