A father of two from Cardiff has spoken out about his battle with HPV-related head and neck cancer, urging others not to ignore unexplained symptoms. Anthony Perriam, 41, discovered a small, painless lump under his jaw after returning from a family holiday in March 2023, which led to a diagnosis of cancer at the base of his tongue.
Perriam, from Whitchurch, initially hesitated to see his GP because the lump did not hurt. However, after an ultrasound, biopsy, and scans at the University Hospital of Wales, he was told the lump was cancerous. 'My first thought wasn't about me – it was about them,' he said, referring to his then three-year-old and six-year-old children.
Surgeons used the hospital's Da Vinci robot to locate the primary tumour at the base of his tongue and removed 44 lymph nodes from his neck. 'They told me they caught it just in time,' Perriam said. 'One of the lymph nodes was on the verge of rupturing.' He then underwent six weeks of radiotherapy and chemotherapy at Velindre Cancer Centre, losing significant weight and requiring a wheelchair during treatment.
Perriam is now in long-term follow-up care but faces lasting side effects including nerve damage and muscle loss. He wants to raise awareness that HPV can cause head and neck cancers in men, not just cervical cancer in women. 'If you find a lump, even if it doesn't hurt, get it checked,' he advised. 'Early action really does save lives.'
