Megadeth’s Dave Mustaine Shares Cancer Diagnosis

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Dave Mustaine, in an uncredited photo via Megadeth’s Facebook page on June 17, 2019

Dave Mustaine, the co-founder, guitarist, and lead vocalist of Megadeth, announced on Monday (June 17) that he has been diagnosed with throat cancer. Treatment has already begun and has forced the band to cancel most of its shows this year.

Megadeth’s 2019 tour had already been snake-bitten. The band were originally scheduled to open for Ozzy Osbourne on his farewell tour. Ozzy subsequently postponed his dates until 2020 due to a variety of health issues.

Here’s Mustaine’s complete statement:

I’ve been diagnosed with throat cancer. It’s clearly something to be respected and faced head on – but I’ve faced obstacles before. I’m working closely with my doctors, and we’ve mapped out a treatment plan which they feel has a 90% success rate. Treatment has already begun.

Unfortunately, this requires that we cancel most shows this year. The 2019 Megacruise will happen, and the band will be a part of it in some form. All up to date information will be at megadeth.com as we get it. Megadeth will be back on the road ASAP.

Meanwhile, Kiko [Loureiro], David [Ellefson], Dirk [Verbeuren] and I are in the studio, working on the follow up to Dystopia – which I can’t wait for everyone to hear.

I’m so thankful for my whole team – family, doctors, band members, trainers, and more.

I’ll keep everyone posted.

See you soon,
Dave Mustaine

Mustaine, 57, was the original guitarist for Metallica, joining in 1981. He departed in 1983 and formed Megadeth. When they burst onto the scene, they virtually inventing a genre and sold more than 38 million albums worldwide, earning numerous accolades including 12 GRAMMY® nominations, and scoring five consecutive platinum albums.

In 1984, Mustaine was determined to start a new band that would be heavier and faster than his peers. Mustaine’s songwriting was rapidly maturing, and he set about combining the attitude and energy of punk, with the power and intricate riffing of metal, along with direct, sociopolitical lyrical content. With David Ellefson on bass and Gar Samuelson on drums, the band recorded their infamous three-song demo which quickly circulated through the underground tape-trading circuit and became an underground hit, leading to a deal with Combat Records.

Mustaine was born September 13, 1961, in La Mesa, Calif.

The Megacruise, to which he referred to, sails out of Los Angeles and takes place October 13-18. Mustaine participated in this year’s Experience Hendrix tour, in March and April.

Watch him play guitar “Purple Haze” on March 21, 2019 in Milwaukee