Rod Stewart Reveals Cancer Scare

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Three years ago, Rod Stewart was diagnosed with prostate cancer, but he was successfully treated and is “in the clear now,” according to published reports surfacing today (Sept. 16). Stewart, 74, made the announcement on Saturday night during a fundraising event for the Prostate Project and European Tour Foundation charity in Surrey, England.

“No one knows this, but I thought this was about time I told everybody,” Stewart said. “I’m in the clear, now, simply because I caught it early. I have so many tests.”

Stewart revealed that he first learned that he had the illness in Feb. 2016, during a routine examination. He has been in remission since July of this year, he added.

Stewart credited his success in beating cancer to attitude and faith. “If you’re positive, and you work through it and you keep a smile on your face… I mean, I’ve worked two years and just been happy, and the good Lord looked after me,” he said.

Watch Rod Stewart announce his prostate cancer diagnosis to the public in September 2019

The singer encouraged other men to be tested for the disease: “Guys, you’ve got to really go to the doctor. Finger up the bum, no harm done.”

Stewart participated in the charity event in the U.K. along with Ronnie Wood and Kenney Jones, both of whom were members of the Faces along with Stewart. Wood, the lead guitarist of the Rolling Stones since 1975, has battled lung cancer successfully.

Stewart’s 2016 diagnosis is not his first confrontation with cancer. In 2001, a CT scan revealed a cancerous tumor on his thyroid. He underwent surgery to remove the growth. At that time, he said, “There’s always thought, I’m gonna live forever…And all of a sudden, you realize you can’t, and it can strike anybody any age, no matter who you are, it can cut you down.”

On April 8, Stewart and Jeff Beck, who performed together in the Jeff Beck Group in the late ’60s, announced they will reunite on stage for their first concert in over 35 years, when they perform together on September 27 at the Hollywood Bowl.

Tickets for Stewart’s concerts are available here.

Watch Stewart sing “I Don’t Want to Talk About It” in 2019