Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Free has beaten lung cancer and is ready to go back on tour. “I had three months of check-ups and it was all clear, and they said go and enjoy life,” Wood told Metro.
The rocker was diagnosed with the disease in 2017 during a routine checkup. Doctors removed a lesion on his lung during a five-hour operation, and fortunately, cancer didn’t spread to other parts of his body.
He told the Mail on Sunday last August that he chose not to have chemotherapy for vanity reasons: “I wasn’t going to use that bayonet in my body. It’s more I wasn’t going to lose my hair. This hair wasn’t going anywhere. I said, ‘No way.’ And I just kept the faith it would be all right.”
People treated with chemotherapy take medication to attack cancer cells. Unfortunately, the treatment can also affect healthy cells and result in hair loss. Other side effects including vomiting and diarrhea.
Updating fans about his condition, Wood told Metro: “If your body is riddled with cancer, it’s a losing cause. Luckily, all mine was contained within the left lung and I was fortunate enough to get shot of it, bang. There was none in the rest of my body so I didn’t require chemo.”
Wood smoked cigarettes for over 50 years but quit the habit when his wife, Sally Humphreys, gave birth to their twin daughters Gracie and Alice in May 2016. “It was a wonder I wasn’t riddled with cancer in both lungs. It’s a wonder they both didn’t explode,” he noted.
He also offered some advice for others who are battling cancer: “Just be strong and remain positive. I was prepared to remain positive to my dying breath. I’ve had a great life and I was all ready to go. Wow! I didn’t know I was going to be given the ticket to last this long. What a reprieve.”
The Rolling Stones will be launching their No Filter European tour at the London Stadium on May 22.
