From battling Sylvester Stallone on screen to silently battling cancer, Dolph Lundgren has come a long way. In a recent revelation, the 65-year-old Swedish actor spoke up about suffering from cancer for the past 8 years. He expresses how he has started to appreciate life more and how sorry he feels for those around him.
Lundgren, who portrayed the Russian boxer Ivan Drage in Rocky IV, disclosed how he was first diagnosed with a tumor in his kidney. The tumor later turned out to be cancerous, spreading throughout his spine, lungs, stomach, and kidney. He links his cancer diagnosis with heavy use of steroids early in his life.
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Dolph Lundgren Speaks Up About His Cancer Diagnoses
While speaking for In Depth With Graham Bensinger, Dolph Lundgren speaks up about how the cancer was first discovered in 2015.
“[There was a] tumor in my kidney and they took it out in 2015 […] but then they did a biopsy and it was cancerous.”
The star who has shared the big screen with several well-known stars in Hollywood, including Sylvester Stallone, was first diagnosed with lung cancer back in 2015. Later on, he went into remission but the deadly disease reappeared in 2020. At the same time, many more tumors were discovered and doctors gave him the unfortunate news that he only had 2 or 3 years left to live.
“At that point it started to hit me that this is kinda something serious.”
The Swedish actor later suffered diarrhea and extreme weight loss after having started systemic therapy. Meanwhile, the tumor in his lung grew only bigger, too big to be removed via surgery.
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Dolph Lundgren Feels Sorry For His Family
A diagnosis like cancer can make even the strongest among us feel fragile and vulnerable. However, it wasn’t a vulnerability that Dolph Lundgren felt, but rather a disappointment. He expressed how he feels sorry for those around him, his daughters Ida and Greta Lundgren (26 & 21) as well as his fiancee Emma Krokdal (25).
“You appreciate life a lot more. […] You just appreciate being lucky enough to be alive [and] every moment”.
Adding on, he expresses how he has come to appreciate life more than before and he is optimistic in these times of ordeal.
Dolph Lundgren Blames Steroid Use For Cancer Diagnoses
After getting a second opinion, Dolph Lundgren has been offered an alternative route for treatment. He explains how the tumors have been shrinking only after three months of the treatment. However, he can’t help but think about his steroid use in his career early on and the possibility of him getting cancer because of them.
“I don’t know if it has something to do with the cancer. Of course it struck me as it could have had something to do with it. I thought about it”
Well, whether steroids led to cancer diagnosis or not, we sincerely wish Lundgren a speedy recovery.
Source: In Depth With Graham Bensinger
