Dave J Hogan/Getty ImagesIt's safe to say Michael Douglas took his fans by surprise when he revealed in a recent interview that his throat cancer was caused by HPV (human papillomavirus), which he could have picked up from oral sex.
But he's not the only celebrity to make headlines over a condition.
E! News takes a look at five others whose shocking health confessions have rocked Tinseltown and beyond.
1. Angelina Jolie: Just weeks before Douglas' disclosure, the Oscar-winning mother of six revealed in an op-ed in the New York Times that she underwent a secret preventive double mastectomy to lower her risk of developing breast cancer due to the fact she carries the "faulty gene" BRCA 1. Not only did Jolie call it "the right thing to do for her family," considering her mother and aunt both died from breast cancer, but it lowered her chances of developing the disease to under 5 percent. The 37-year-old actress and humanitarian also sparked a healthy public discussion about women's health.
2. Giuliana Rancic: A little closer to home, In October 2011 the E! News anchor dropped a bombshell when she revealed that she was diagnosed with early stage breast cancer. Two months later, Rancic underwent a successful double mastectomy and reconstructive surgery. The Fashion Police mainstay went public about the procedure and subsequently went on to praise Jolie for her decision. She also has become a strong advocate on behalf of Bright Pink, a nonprofit focusing on risk reduction and early detection of breast and ovarian cancer in young women.
3. George Michael: When he canceled the remainder of his fall 2011 tour due to illness, fans of the "Faith" singer had no idea they were so close to losing him. Michael spent a month in a Vienna hospital's intensive care unit battling life-threatening pneumonia, but kept his condition private because he didn't want to worry his fans. The hitmaker went on to make a full recovery and finally opened up about his brush with death at a press conference outside his London home in December 2011, revealing that not only did he have to learn to walk again amid some of the complications, but that he had very little memory of his ordeal.
4. Michael J. Fox: The Back to the Future star stunned Hollywood when in 1998 he announced he had early-onset Parkinson's disease and had been keeping it under wraps since his diagnosis in 1990. Since going public, Fox has become one of the most high-profile advocates to fight for a cure, raising millions to fund Parkinson's research while continuing to work on and off in film and TV. Starting in fall 2013, in fact, the beloved thesp will return to the tube to star in a new NBC comedy series, The Michael J. Fox Show, which will find him playing a character with Parkinson's disease, loosely based on himself.
5. Magic Johnson: Probably the most shocking health revelation of them all, the world was caught off guard when the Los Angeles Lakers legend revealed in a press conference in November 1991 that he had tested positive for HIV. After initially retiring following his announcement, Magic went on to play in the 1992 NBA All-Star Game and was part of the Dream Team that won gold at the 1992 Summer Olympics. After a brief comeback as a player and a coach, he retired again. He has since wrote a book on safe sex and developed programs and educational initiatives through his Magic Johnson Foundation.