James Michael Tyler says that his stage four cancer has now moved to his spine.
The 59-year-old actor, who famously played Central Perk barista Gunther in the hit sitcom Friends, first spoke about his diagnosis on Monday, June 21, revealing he has been receiving treatment for almost three years.
Now the actor's manager and friend, Toni Benson, has revealed that the star has been paralyzed as a result of his cancer spreading to his spinal cord.
In a recent interview with People Magazine, Benson spoke about Tyler's determination to survive, stating:
"He's going to fight this. Lately, he's been having amazing days. He's done his second round of chemo and so far he is doing really well, and he's hopeful it will be effective."
Benson added: "Though he's wheelchair-bound, he's very mobile. He has the most amazing attitude. I don't think he's going anywhere for a long time."
Tyler first shared the diagnosis in an interview with TODAY on June 21. In it, he stated that he had been diagnosed with stage four prostate cancer back in 2018 - which has since spread to his bones and spine.
The actor claimed that his illness had been made manageable by treatment for some time, stating:
"All I had to do was take a pill in the morning and the night, and boom, life was pretty much normal [...] I had no symptoms, I didn't feel any symptoms. And it was very easy to regulate."
However, he claimed that the cancer had since mutated, and ended his interview by urging men to request a PSA test when they next visit their doctor, since it would make any signs of cancer "easily detectible".
Tyler later provided his fans with an update on his health, sharing a picture of himself undergoing treatment at the hospital with his 32,000 followers on Instagram.
Alongside the snap, he wrote: "Just finished chemo round 2 last week! Thank you all so much for your outpouring of love and support. It means the world to me [...] Early detection can make all the difference."
