Barry Humphries fought a secret battle with inoperable cancer for years before his death last week.

The Australian actor and comic, known for his alter ego Dame Edna Everage, died aged 89 on April 22 following complications from a recent hip replacement surgery.

As he was farewelled on Friday, surrounded by family and close friends, reports emerged that Humphries’ health was “complex” during the final years of his life.

“Close family sources” confirmed to the The Saturday Telegraph he had been diagnosed with Extramammary Paget’s disease, a rare form of skin cancer, in 2021 after noticing “something unusual” on one of his testicles when he was in the shower.

He underwent surgery following this initial discovery but after his recent hip operation doctors realised “the extent of the cancer that would ... end his life within six weeks”.

“I had the rare Extramammary Paget’s disease, first noticed under the shower — so it was a general anaesthetic and the knife,” he explained in his column for The Oldies magazine at the time.

Humphries was farewelled at a private funeral by family and friends, who made last-minute arrangements to be there after being only given 24 hours’ notice.

More information about extramammary Paget’s disease (EMPD) can be found here: Learn about Extramammary Paget’s disease (EMPD)