text: On Monday 3 June, the Guardian published an interview with the actor Michael Douglas in which he said that his cancer was "caused by HPV (human papillomavirus), which actually comes from cunnilingus". 
   
   Allen Burry, a spokesman for the actor, has since denied that Douglas said that oral sex was the cause of his own cancer, but was merely one of the many causes of oral cancer. "In a discussion with the newspaper," the Associated Press quotes Burry as saying, "they talked about the causes of oral cancer, one of which was oral sex, which is noted and has been known for a while now." 
   
   The Guardian firmly denies this charge of misrepresentation. Mr Burry was not present at the Guardian's interview with Michael Douglas; the only two people present were Mr Douglas and the Guardian writer, Xan Brooks. Here is the audio file of the relevant part of the interview, along with a verbatim transcript of that section. 
   
   Xan Brooks: Do you feel, in hindsight, that you overloaded your system? Overloaded your system with drugs, smoking, drink? 
   
   Michael Douglas: No. No. Ah, without getting too specific, this particular cancer is caused by something called HPV, which actually comes about from cunnilingus. ||||| Michael Douglas' public relations team went into damage control mode Monday, insisting the actor never said he contracted throat cancer from oral sex. 
   
   “He wants to make it very clear he never said that was the particular cause of his particular cancer,” Douglas’ publicist, Allen Burry, told the Daily News. 
   
   Douglas’ flack was forced to backtrack after his boss, in an eyebrow-raising interview with The Guardian newspaper, blamed his cancer on “a sexually transmitted disease that causes cancer.” 
   
   Douglas attends the One Centennial Sensation, the 100th birthday celebration of the American Cancer Society, at the Hudson Theatre Monday evening. “This particular cancer is caused by HPV," he says in a recent interview. (Ben Gabbe/Getty Images) 
   
   “This particular cancer is caused by HPV, which actually comes about from” oral sex, he said. 
   
   The 68-year-old star of “Basic Instinct” and “Wall Street” had previously blamed the cancer that sidelined him on nicotine and alcohol. 
   
   Catherine Zeta-Jones won’t get the cancer from husband Michael Douglas, says the expert. (Charles Eshelman/FilmMagic) 
   
   Burry refused to concede Douglas’ words might have caused people to conclude he got cancer from sex. And when pressed whether Douglas tested positive for one of the human papilloma virus strains linked to oral cancer, Burry said, “I don’t think it’s really anybody’s business anymore.” 
   
   Douglas was honored by the American Cancer Society Monday at the Hudson Theater. “I have one footnote to make,” he said to laughter. “I’ve become, I think, in the past 24 hours a sort of poster boy for oral cancer, and just so you all understand, I think we would all love to know where our cancer comes from. 
   
   A gaunt-looking Michael Douglas pictured in 2010 when the actor was undergoing chemotherapy. (INFPhoto.com) 
   
   “I simply, to a reporter, tried to give a little PSA announcement about HPV, a virus that can cause oral cancer, and is one of the few areas of cancer that can be controlled and there are vaccinations that kids can get. So that was my attempt.” 
   
   His ex-wife Diandra told TMZ.com that she doesn’t have HPV — and her actor ex didn’t catch anything from her. 
   
   Catherine Zeta-Jones and Michael Douglas. The actor took a moment to clarify his comments to The Guardian when he was honored Monday night by the American Cancer Society. “I simply, to a reporter, tried to give a little PSA announcement about HPV, a virus that can cause oral cancer, and is one of the few areas of cancer that can be controlled and there are vaccinations that kids can get. So that was my attempt.” (Richard Corkery/New York Daily News) 
   
   Douglas’ wife, actress Catherine Zeta-Jones, had no comment. 
   
   hevans@nydailynews.com
target: – Michael Douglas has backtracked after hitting the headlines by saying his throat cancer was caused by oral sex instead of smoking and drinking. The actor's publicist now says that he wasn't talking about his own cancer being caused by the human papilloma virus, the BBC reports. The reversal prompted the Guardian to release audio of its interview with Douglas, in which the actor says he doesn't regret his years of smoking and drinking, because "this particular cancer is caused by something called HPV, which actually comes about from cunnilingus." At an American Cancer Society event in New York last night, Douglas said he had been trying to raise awareness of the link between HPV and throat cancer, the New York Daily News reports. "I've become, I think, in the past 24 hours a sort of poster boy for oral cancer, and just so you all understand, I think we would all love to know where our cancer comes from," he told the audience. "I simply, to a reporter, tried to give a little PSA announcement about HPV, a virus that can cause oral cancer, and is one of the few areas of cancer that can be controlled and there are vaccinations that kids can get."