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Sam Neill reveals diagnosis of stage-three blood cancer in memoir

Heimdall_Xtreme

Hermen Hulst Fanclub's #1 Member
Actor Sam Neill has revealed he is being treated for stage-three blood cancer, writing in a memoir that he was "possibly dying" from the illness diagnosed a year ago.

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The New Zealander, who burst to fame after starring as Dr Alan Grant in the 1993 blockbuster Jurassic Park, said he began treatment last March for non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

Neill, 75, makes the revelation in his book Did I Ever Tell You This?, which is being released next week.

In the opening chapter, written while undergoing chemotherapy, Neill said: "The thing is, I'm crook. Possibly dying. I may have to speed this up."


The actor told The Guardian he is now in remission but will continue to undergo chemotherapy for the remainder of his life.

"I can't pretend that the last year hasn't had its dark moments," he said.

"But those dark moments throw the light into sharp relief, you know, and have made me grateful for every day and immensely grateful for all my friends. Just pleased to be alive.
"I never had any intention to write a book. But as I went on and kept writing, I realised it was actually sort of giving me a reason to live and I would go to bed thinking, 'I'll write about that tomorrow … that will entertain me.'

"And so it was a lifesaver really, because I couldn't have gone through that with nothing to do, you know."

Neill's vast acting career began in the 1970s and has spanned dozens of roles in TV and film, including Peaky Blinders, The Hunt for Red October, and The Piano.

He is currently preparing for a role in a television adaptation of Liane Moriarty's bestselling novel Apples Never Fall, which will be filmed in Australia.

When he's not acting, Neill also runs vineyards in the picturesque Central Otago region of New Zealand's South Island.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-03...-diagnosis-stage-three-blood-cancer/102115142
 
Hope he's able to fight it and claw back his remaining years. Stage three from my understanding is pretty bad, with stage four being the final form. Ironically he played a character in the movie Daybreakers who also had cancer, though he circumvented the problem by turning into a vampire. You know what to do Sam...

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John Marston

GAF's very own treasure goblin
Chemotherapy for the rest of his life sounds rough. I imagine at stage 3 it's the aggressive kind.
I had 8 "preventive" chemo sessions back in 2018 to get rid of metastasis on my liver and it left me permanently sensitive to cold.
I hope he pulls through and has all the love & support he deserves.
 
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As someone who underwent chemotherapy this is some high level bullshit - it’s not like exfoliating your face pores, Jesus.

You are cured, you have regular check-ups, that’s it.
All cancers are the same. Sadly he doesn't access to amazing internet doctors like yourself who can see a diagnosis/treatment based on 2 lines of text.
 
As someone who underwent chemotherapy this is some high level bullshit - it’s not like exfoliating your face pores, Jesus.

You are cured, you have regular check-ups, that’s it.
Now that’s some pure high level bullshit. You’re never cured when it comes to cancer. The term “cancer-free” is verbal irony, you’ll always be looking over your shoulder for the rest of your life in the hopes that it doesn’t return. Always.
 

Cyberpunkd

Member
Now that’s some pure high level bullshit. You’re never cured when it comes to cancer. The term “cancer-free” is verbal irony, you’ll always be looking over your shoulder for the rest of your life in the hopes that it doesn’t return. Always.
Do you know what you are talking about? Yes, you are cured when all the cancer cells are dead. Which the chemotherapy is for, since it kills all the cells, but cancer ones much quicker.
 
Do you know what you are talking about? Yes, you are cured when all the cancer cells are dead. Which the chemotherapy is for, since it kills all the cells, but cancer ones much quicker.
But there’s always a chance that certain cancer cells remain or have built resistances. Chemotherapy by design isn’t perfect anyway, you’re killing the person in the hopes the cancer dies first. You do know that cancer isn’t curable right? It’s basically treatable in the hopes it doesn’t come back when you’re so called “cancer free”.
 

Cyberpunkd

Member
But there’s always a chance that certain cancer cells remain or have built resistances. Chemotherapy by design isn’t perfect anyway, you’re killing the person in the hopes the cancer dies first. You do know that cancer isn’t curable right? It’s basically treatable in the hopes it doesn’t come back when you’re so called “cancer free”.
No, there is no chance if chemotherapy was run for a correct time and respecting the doses. There is no such thing as cancer cells going into hiding, you are flushing your system with a liquid whose sole purpose is to exterminate cancer cells. Likewise, once you get cancer once it doesn’t mean at all your body as a hidden setting to get you cancer any chance it can. You are for all intents and purposes cured and depending on the disease once in remission for a specified period of time you are considered medically-speaking as never had one.
 
No, there is no chance if chemotherapy was run for a correct time and respecting the doses. There is no such thing as cancer cells going into hiding, you are flushing your system with a liquid whose sole purpose is to exterminate cancer cells. Likewise, once you get cancer once it doesn’t mean at all your body as a hidden setting to get you cancer any chance it can. You are for all intents and purposes cured and depending on the disease once in remission for a specified period of time you are considered medically-speaking as never had one.
This is simply incorrect from my understanding of what cancer is and it's treatment. Can somebody from DoctorGAF come here and mediate this discussion? Because it's well known that cancerous cells can build resistances to chemotherapy treatments and drugs, there's even information out there about cancerous cells laying dormant for years before returning later on. Don't take my word for it, do a Google search and check out the sources from medical institutes.

People who cling onto the statement they are "cancer-free" should be happy to hear such news, but it's a misnomer from what I've read about it. There are no tests to completely be certain that every cancerous cell has been eliminated, we don't even have a complete cure for the disease and are still learning from it. You've said it yourself that you were a cancer patient and I applaud your bravery in sharing such news, but you've built up this false sense of invulnerability as though you're rid of cancer. You'll always be on that train man until the last stop, I'm not trying to scare you, but bring this to your attention.
 
Personally my outlook is that I'm cancer free *for now* .
While I don't think about it too much I remain aware it could come back anytime.

There's a reason that even 5 years after my diagnosis I still get follow up scans every 6 months.
To quote my oncologist: "We don't fuck around with cancer." ☺️
That’s the perfect attitude to have Zelphyr. Don’t allow it to control and scare you, but be cautious that it’s a possibility, so don’t strain your body doing stupid crap.

The problem with people like Cyberpunk here is that he thinks he’s free to do whatever he wants because he’s supposedly “cured” of cancer. Go do hard drugs, eat heavy garbage food and put massive strain on your body. You’ll get a rude awakening one day when it comes back.
 
My old man was diagnosed with non-hodgkins lymphoma when I was in middle school. Docs did not give him a good prognosis, a few years at best. When they couldn't find a marrow donor match, they tried chemo. Cancer went into remission, and after a few years we thought he was in the clear.
When he started getting sick again they ran the labs and diagnosed him with some rare form of leukemia, he did not survive that one. Dr. Nadler of the Dana Farber Cancer Institute theorized that the chemo that saved him from the lymphoma may have inadvertently sparked the leukemia.
In the end I was happy for the time we had with him. Originally the docs thought he'd maybe make it long enough to see me graduate high school, but the leukemia didn't take him till I was 31. He got to meet all but one of his grandkids.
 
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