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Sam Neill Stage 3 Cancer: Sam Neill Update On Health Battle
While conducting publicity for Jurassic World Dominion in March 2022, he noticed sore glands and was later given a non-Hodgkin lymphoma diagnosis.
The 76-year-old said he has no need to waste time learning about his illness and will leave it to the professionals.
After being given the all-clear, Neill had three months of chemotherapy before the medication stopped functioning and the tumor kept spreading. He then changed to a rare anti-cancer medication, which worked.
Neill has now endured a year of remission. He will always need infusions every two weeks.
The days immediately following therapy, he said, are “very grim and depressing,” leaving him feeling as though he’s “gone 10 rounds with a boxer.”
But, he said, “It’s keeping me alive.”
Sam Neill tells fans he is “alive and well” and asks them not to “worry” about his health following the cancer revelation.
Neill claimed that after receiving his diagnosis, he understood “how immensely grateful” he is to be alive.
While undergoing chemotherapy, Neill made the decision to write short stories about his life, which resulted in his memoir Did I Ever Tell You This? His goal in writing the biography was to leave his family with “a sense of me.”
He said, “I had some really lonely times last year. “I felt some of my stories would be wonderful for them to have. In a month or two, I might not be around. We’ll give them something.
Neill also disclosed that after chemotherapy failed to treat his angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma, he began taking a novel, experimental medication that was effective.
Neill will continue to receive infusions every two weeks for the remainder of his life or until the medication becomes ineffective.
He described the sessions as taxing, dismal, and unpleasant.
Neill is aware that it won’t endure forever despite this. His physicians have informed him that the medication will eventually stop functioning, but he claims to be “prepared for” this eventuality.
“I’m not in the least bit afraid of dying. That worries me not. I’ve never been concerned about that from the start, but I would be annoyed,’ he continued.
‘I’d be annoyed because there are things I still want to do. Very irritating, dying. But I’m not afraid of it.’
Neil told the publication that “the cancer thing” has simply increased his focus on living life to the fullest, adding that he is “so pleased to be awake” each morning.
After learning that he had non-Hodgkin blood cancer, he began making plans to write the letter to his son Tim, daughter Elena, and grandchildren.
The actor admitted, “I didn’t really know how long I had to live.”
I considered writing anything down for my children and grandchildren because I might not be around in a few months and it would be beneficial for them to know who I am and what I’ve accomplished.
Angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma might present with symptoms such as a high temperature, sweating at night, a skin rash, and autoimmune diseases.
The 76-year-old Jurassic Park actor revealed to Australian Story that after learning he had non-Hodgkin blood cancer, he began planning to write the letter to his son Tim, daughter Elena, and grandchildren.
Elena, 32, and Tim, 40, are the children of the celebrity and Japanese makeup artist Noriko Watanabe, with whom he was married from 1989 to 2017.
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What Is Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma?
It is a type of cancer that begins in your lymphatic system, which is part of the body’s germ-fighting immune system. In non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, white blood cells called lymphocytes grow abnormally and can form growths (tumors) throughout the body.
Non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHLs) are tumors originating from lymphoid tissues, mainly lymph nodes.
The tumors may result from chromosomal translocations, infections, environmental factors, immunodeficiency states, and chronic inflammation.
Signs and symptoms of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
Signs and symptoms of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma may include:
- Swollen lymph nodes in your neck, armpits, or groin
- Abdominal pain or swelling
- Chest pain, coughing, or trouble breathing
- Persistent fatigue
- Fever
- Night sweats
- Unexplained weight loss
In most instances, doctors don’t know what causes non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
Treatment for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma includes chemotherapy, radiation therapy, targeted drug therapy, bone marrow transplants, engineering immune cells to fight lymphoma, and immunotherapy.