‘I Got This Power from You Guys’ — Megadeth’s Dave Mustaine’s Emotional Announcement that He’s Free of Throat Cancer

Mustaine started out his talk from the stage sharing his cancer journey. “About a year ago, we were working on our new album back in Franklin, Tennessee, and I started to feel some pain,” he said. When his doctor told him he had cancer, he was “shocked.”

At first, I thought, ‘Am I afraid?’ And then I said, ‘No. I’m f*cking pissed.’ We stopped the record [we were recording] — we stopped everything. I went into treatment for cancer.”

Mustaine said he had “51 radiation treatments and nine chemo treatments. And when it was all said and done, every day I would think, ‘I can’t face not playing again,’ so I would pray.”

RELATED: 'Life Is a Gift & Our Health Is Precious' Megadeth Bandmates Celebrate Throat-Cancer Survivor Dave Mustaine's Return to the Stage

Mustaine said keeping his fans and family in mind helped inspire him to power through his treatment. "I thought about you guys every day, too. And I thought about my family. And I got this power from you guys. And I just kept thinking about it…and on Oct. 16, I went to go see the doctor, and he said, ‘You’re 100% free of cancer.'”

His daughter, Electra Mustaine, is thrilled her dad is healthy and performing. The singer joined the band earlier in the week at its Paris concert.

“So honored to sing alongside my papa the other night in Paris! Thank you for singing with us!! He is a true hero to us all! ???????????? â €”

 

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…So honored to sing alongside my papa the other night in Paris! Thank you for singing with us!! He is a true hero to us all! ???????????? â € (????: @screamforme_ig)

A post shared by Electra Mustaine (@electramustaine) on Jan 30, 2020 at 11:54am PST

‘Life Is a Gift and Our Health Is Precious’

Mustaine’s bandmates are overjoyed as well by his recovery. After the first show back on tour in January, Megadeth bassist David Ellefson posted a message on social media with a picture from the concert in Helsinki, writing, "Life is a gift and our health is precious. Thank you for all the prayers and support to Dave and the Megadeth camp these past months… they surely worked!"

Navigating a Throat Cancer Diagnosis

We don't know the exact symptoms that caused Mustaine to seek his doctor’s care, but typically, when a patient develops a sore on the tongue or a lesion in the inside of the mouth that doesn't heal, they should see their primary care doctor. That doctor will likely refer them to an ear, nose and throat surgeon or an oral surgeon.

Of course, there are times a doctor might be the first person to notice a potential symptom.

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"Oftentimes, we have patients who are referred to our clinics from their dentists’ office who notice a sore that doesn't seem to be healing, or a wound that is on the inside of their mouth or around their teeth,” Dr. Jessica Geiger, a medical oncologist at the Cleveland Clinic Cancer Center who specializes in head and neck cancer, told SurvivorNet in a previous interview. “Then, we set the patients up with a biopsy to confirm cancer or to show something else and we proceed from there."

HPV and Throat Cancer

Many people don’t know that Human papillomavirus can cause a handful of cancers, including throat cancer. While cancers in the back of the throat are often caused by tobacco and alcohol, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), recent studies indicate that as many as 60% to 70% of these throat cancers may be linked to HPV, or caused by a combination of HPV, alcohol and tobacco.

Dr. Jessica Geiger on HPV and throat cancer

"There are no screening guidelines to screen for throat cancer, unlike cervical cancer with pap smears," says Dr. Geiger. "There are no standard tests to determine if you harbor the virus."

On the plus side, HPV-related throat cancers are generally very responsive to a combination of radiation and chemotherapy treatments. "The cure rates for people who have HPV-related disease are a lot higher than those who have tobacco-related throat cancer,” she said.

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