What Marcia Cross's Advocacy Can Help Us Understand About Anal Cancer and HPV

On screen

Actress Marcia Cross, best known for Desperate Housewives, has shared publicly that she was diagnosed with anal cancer in 2018 after a routine gynecological exam — she had no symptoms, and the cancer was found during a physical exam. She was treated and has since made it her mission to talk about a cancer most people are too embarrassed to name, urging people to stop being ashamed of their bodies. She has also shared that her cancer was linked to HPV, the same virus connected to her husband's earlier throat cancer. Cross co-founded the HPV Cancers Alliance and has taken her advocacy to Capitol Hill, pressing for HPV education and vaccination awareness — work that continues in 2026.

We share only what she has chosen to make public, and we do not speculate about any private details of her care.

The reality

According to the National Cancer Institute, anal cancer cases have been increasing over several decades, and infection with human papillomavirus (HPV) is the major risk factor for anal cancer. NCI explains that HPV causes six types of cancer — including cervical, anal, and oropharyngeal (throat) cancers — which is why one family can be touched by HPV-related cancer in more than one way, as Cross has described.

HPV itself is a group of more than 200 related viruses, some spread through direct sexual contact. Most HPV infections never lead to cancer, but about a dozen high-risk types can — and NCI notes that HPV types 16 and 18 alone cause about 70% of cervical cancers and an even higher share of some other HPV-caused cancers.

What the story gets right — and what to remember

Cross's central point — that embarrassment keeps people from care — is a public-health insight as much as a personal one. Her cancer was found at a routine exam she almost certainly could have skipped, and she has urged women to keep seeing their gynecologists even after menopause. At the same time, her diagnosis and treatment were specific to her, and having HPV does not mean a person will develop cancer. Her story is a nudge toward openness and routine care, not a reason for alarm.

Awareness, screening & prevention

Anal cancer's clearest prevention story runs through HPV. NCI explains that the HPV vaccine (Gardasil 9) protects against the virus types that cause most HPV-related cancers; the CDC recommends vaccination for children and adults ages 9 through 26, routinely at age 11 or 12, and adults 27 through 45 who weren't vaccinated earlier can discuss with a clinician whether it makes sense for them. You can read more in our plain-language guide to the HPV vaccine. Beyond vaccination, keeping up with routine exams matters — Cross's own story shows why — and our free screening check-up tool is a warm, judgment-free way to see which screenings and check-ups fit your age and history.

Turning a story into something useful

Marcia Cross decided that saving others from stigma was worth telling an uncomfortable story with her name on it. The useful response is to match that candor in small ways: use the real names of body parts and cancers, ask your healthcare team the awkward question, and make sure the young people in your life have heard about HPV vaccination. Supporting free, plain-language cancer education helps that candor spread.

Questions to ask a healthcare team

• Should the HPV vaccine be part of the plan for me or my children?
• What routine exams should I keep having as I get older?
• What symptoms or changes in that part of the body deserve a prompt look?
• How does HPV cause cancer, and does a positive HPV test mean I will get cancer?