Ronnie Wood Says He Worried It Was Time To Say Goodbye After Cancer Diagnosis

Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood has opened up about his cancer diagnosis in a new interview with the Daily Mails Event magazine.

The 70-year-old British rocker revealed he was diagnosed with lung cancer about three months ago during a routine check up for the upcoming Rolling Stones tour.

Ive had a fight with a touch of lung cancer, he said. There was a week when everything hung in the balance and it could have been curtains time to say goodbye. You never know what is going to happen.

Doctors performed a five-hour operation to remove the growth and part of Woods lung, but luckily, the musician is OK now, he told the outlet. Following the surgery, Wood said in a statement he was grateful to doctors for finding the growth early. Hell continue to get checked every three months, and encouraged others to do the same.

People have to get checked. Seriously have to get checked, he said. I was bloody lucky but then Ive always had a very strong guardian angel looking out for me. By rights I shouldnt be here.

Wood, who became a father to twins in 2016 , admitted he wasnt totally surprised by the diagnosis. The musician noted that hed wondered about the state of his health in the past, especially because of his 50 years of chain-smoking and all the rest of my bad habits. When his doctor asked if Wood wanted a more thorough check at his heart and lungs, the rocker encouraged it.

And then he came back with the news that I had this supernova burning away on my left lung, he said. And, to be totally honest, I wasnt surprised. I knew I hadnt had a chest X-ray since I went into Cottonwood [a rehab clinic in Tucson, Arizona] in 2002. He asked me what I wanted to do and my answer was simple: Just get it out of me.

Wood credited his wife, Sally Humphreys, with being a solid support system throughout the whole process. The two kept the diagnosis to themselves, Wood said, because they didnt want to put anyone else though the hell we were going through.

He also revealed that, if the cancer had spread beyond his lungs, he wouldnt have gone through chemo. It wasnt because he thought chemo wouldnt work, though. It was because this hair wasnt going anywhere, he said.

After the interview was published, Wood thanked fans for the support on Twitter.

Im feeling great and ready to see you on the road next month, he wrote.

Thank you for all your words of support today ~ I'm feeling great and ready to see you on the road next month https://t.co/qYMWrGpzpp

Ronnie Wood (@ronniewood) August 6, 2017","type":"rich","meta":{"author":"Ronnie Wood","author_url":"https://twitter.com/ronniewood","cache_age":86400,"description":"Thank you for all your words of support today ~ I'm feeling great and ready to see you on the road next month https://t.co/qYMWrGpzpp— Ronnie Wood (@ronniewood) August 6, 2017\n","provider_name":"Twitter","title":"Ronnie Wood on 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Thank you for all your words of support today ~ I'm feeling great and ready to see you on the road next month https://t.co/qYMWrGpzpp
Ronnie Wood (@ronniewood) August 6, 2017

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You can read Woods full interview at the Daily Mail .