Ron Wood Reveals That He Battled Cancer for a Second Time Last Year

The COVID-19 pandemic brought about unspeakable hardships for plenty of people over the past year — including musicians, who were dealt a huge financial blow. But in a new interview with The Sun, Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood has revealed a different struggle that he was forced to deal with during quarantine: a second battle with cancer.

Wood, 73, who previously had lung cancer in 2017, told the publication he was diagnosed with small-cell carcinoma in 2020 but has since been given a clean bill of health.

“I’ve had cancer two different ways now,” he said. “I had lung cancer in 2017 and I had small-cell more recently that I fought in the last lockdown … I came through with the all-clear.”

Wood, who has been to rehab eight times over the years to treat various substance abuse issues, credited the teachings of Alcoholics Anonymous with helping him through his cancer recovery.

“I’m going through a lot of problems now, but throughout my recovery, you have to let it go,” he explained. “And when you hand the outcome over to your higher power, that is a magic thing. That brings you back to the [AA and NA’s] Serenity Prayer: ‘Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change.’ That’s incredible. What will be will be, it’s nothing to do with me. All I can do is stay positive in my attitude, be strong and fight it, and the rest is up to my higher power.”

Wood previously attributed his 2017 lung cancer diagnosis to smoking “25 to 30 cigarettes a day for 50-odd years” before he eventually quit smoking in 2016. He had part of his lung removed in a five-hour operation that year, and he was confirmed cancer-free in 2018.