Magic Johnson did it for HIV. Katie Couric did it for colon cancer. And Angelina Jolie did it for double mastectomy.
As public health officials well know, there is no substitute for a celebrity to get out your message on prevention. There hasn't really been a face for prevention of cervical cancer through vaccination for the human papilloma virus, or HPV.
Now comes superstar Michael Douglas and his statement over the weekend that his throat cancer may have come from oral sex, a route of transmission for HPV. While there is no certainty, it raised the profile of a common virus that is wreaking havoc.
Irene Maher of the Tampa Bay Times uses Douglas' attention-getting remarks as a jumping-off point for a Q-and-A with Dr. Anna Giuliano, director of the Center for Infection Research in Cancer at the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute.