How Turning to Art Helps During Health Struggles
- Jeff Bridges, whose never-before-heard music from the 70s has been released by Light in the Attic Records, has admitted that his battles with non-Hodgkin lymphoma and Covid-19 ultimately led him to want to share his music creations made decades ago.
- Bridges, who is known for starring as Jeff “The Dude” Lebowski in the 1998 comedy thriller “The Big Lebowski,” faced a lymphoma diagnosis in 2020 — and about a year later, in September 2021, was declared in remission. During that time, he endured a lengthy hospital stay while fighting Covid-19 as cancer treatment had weakened his immunity.
- He had chemotherapy to treat his disease. Other lymphoma treatments include active surveillance, radiation, and bone marrow transplant. The two main types of lymphoma are Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Non-Hodgkin lymphoma is more common, and you’re more likely to be diagnosed with it after age 55. People usually develop Hodgkin lymphoma at a younger age.
- Creating and listening to music, or engaging in any other form of art or creation, can be a powerful tool when coping with cancer or other health struggles.
- Research has shown that just listening to music can reduce anxiety and produce other positive effects on mental health.
The loving husband and dad of three previously dealt with a lymphoma diagnosis in 2020, and approximately one year later, in September 2021, was declared in remission after undergoing chemotherapy. As he was going through cancer treatment, a Covid-19 diagnosis led to a lengthy hospital stay due to him having a weakened immune system.
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He continued, “A couple years ago I had cancer, and then I had COVID, and the COVID made the cancer look like nothing.
“Chemo had stripped me of my immune system. I was right at the door, you know? People didn’t know if I was gonna make it.”
Bridges explained, offering insight into what inspired him to go public with his music that has been kept hidden since the 70s, “I thought, Hey, look, Jeff, you’re seventy-three. Do you have the juice to go in and polish all these tunes that you have? Why not just put ’em out?
“There’s so much content now, or whatever they call it, in one sense, it’s kind of a good thing, because everything becomes less precious. So I thought, Well, this kind of bookends the whole thing.”
“This release is in the same spirit as the Wednesday-night jams,” he noted.
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Further recounting his “Wednesday-night jams” from about five decades ago, which is the basis to his new album, he said, “It was creating this safe place, you know? It’s the same kind of thing when you’re making a movie. That’s what I look to a director for, to create a vibe that we’re all set loose in.
“Every director has a different approach in how they create that vibe. But I’ve gotten a chance to work with some real masters.”
When asked if he’s ever had a moment where he thought he needed to choose between acting or a music career, he explained, “My parents loved acting so much. They encouraged all of their kids to go into it, unlike a lot of entertainers. But as a teen-ager who wants to do what their parents want ’em to do? I resisted.
“Beau, my elder brother, is eight years older. The music coming out of his room was Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Buddy Holly, the Everly Brothers. And then my music, you know, everybody probably thinks their era is the best music, but mine? Beatles? C’mon. Bob Dylan, Stones, Motown. All of this great stuff.”
He continued, “The idea of being in a band was so attractive to me. And my father said, ‘Don’t worry. That’s what’s great about acting. You’re called upon to explore all those interests.’
“I’m glad I listened to the old man, and I’m also glad that this music kept bubbling up in different forms.”
Looking back on how Light in the Attic records initially said they wanted to share Bridges’ music without any alterations, he admitted to feeling surprised.
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He added, “Often you’ll have an album that’s a success, and then maybe a year or two later they’ll have the ‘making of’ album, where you hear all the rough stuff. This is kind of like doing that in reverse.
“This is letting all the rough stuff out, and if I or anybody else wants to polish ’em up that’s something else.”
On the day his album was released, which happened to be Record Store Day (April 12), Bridges took to Instagram via Light in the Attic Records to say, “It’s record day! Yeah. My album ‘Slow Magic’ is coming out, man.
“Almost 50 years in the making. Pretty absurd, man. Hope you dig it.”
Jeff Bridges Battled Cancer & Covid
Jeff Bridges was diagnosed with lymphoma in 2020 and started chemotherapy treatment right away. Although Bridges hasn’t personally specified which type of lymphoma he was diagnosed with, AARP noted that his cancer was, in fact, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, cancer of a type of white blood cells called lymphocytes, which are part of the immune system.
RELATED: Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma: Overview: Overview
While cancer treatment was going well, he was also diagnosed with COVID-19 in January 2021, and due to his cancer treatment having weakened his immune system, Bridges wound up spending months in the hospital.
According to AARP, Bridges’ cancer went into remission quickly after he was put through chemotherapy infusion, which was followed by an oral chemo protocol.
He dubbed his wife Susan Geston as being his “absolute champion” as she stayed by Bridges’ side as he recovered from covid in the hospital.
“She really fought to keep me off a ventilator. I didn’t want to be on it, and the doctors didn’t necessarily want that. But Sue was adamant,” he told the news outlet.
Expert Resources On Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma
- CAR T-Cell Therapy for Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma
- Could New Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma Drugs Mean Less Chemo in the Future?
- Could Weed Killer or Radiation Exposure Increase Your Risk for Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma?
- Here’s What Radiation Is Like for Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma- And The Standard of Care
- Making a Plan After Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma Relapse
- Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma Treatment — and Beyond
- Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma Treatment: Finding the Right Fit for You
- Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma: It’s More Than Just One Type
- Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma: Treat Right Away, Or Wait?
- Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma: Types of Biopsy
He was ultimately treated with a blood plasma called “convalescent plasma,” which consists of viral antibodies.
Despite his struggle, like so many cancer survivors, Bridges was left with a renewed appreciation for life.
“I’ll be honest. I didn’t know if I was going to make it,” he told Esquire Middle East in 2022. “I was on death’s door there for a while in the hospital. When I finally went back to work, after a two-year hiatus, it was the most bizarre kind of thing. It felt like a dream.”
“I came back after all that time, and saw the same faces [while shooting ‘The Old Man’], the same cast and crew,” he added. “It was like we had a long weekend. I gathered everyone and I said, ‘I had the most bizarre dream, you guys.’ I was sick and out, but all that feels like a gray mush now.”
Understanding Lymphoma
Jeff Bridges reportedly battled non-Hodgkin lymphoma, one of the two most common types of lymphoma.
Lymphoma is a cancer of the immune system that affects infection-fighting cells called lymphocytes. And there are more than 40 different types of lymphoma.
Sneaky Lymphoma Symptoms Often Lead to a Late Diagnosis
“Lymphoma is split up into a number of different categories,” Dr. Elise Chong, a medical oncologist at Penn Medicine, previously told SurvivorNet.
“The first distinguishing breakpoint, if you will, is non-Hodgkin lymphoma versus Hodgkin lymphoma,” she added, “and those sound like two different categories. But non-Hodgkin lymphoma comprises the majority of lymphoma, and Hodgkin lymphoma is a single specific type of lymphoma.”
Hodgkin lymphoma has distinctive, giant cells called Reed-Sternberg cells. The presence of these cells, which can be seen under a microscope, will help your doctor determine which of the two lymphoma types you have.
RELATED: Watch this Inspiring Film About the Impact Art & Music Can Have on the Cancer Journey
There are a few other important differences between non-Hodgkin lymphoma and Hodgkin lymphoma to note. For one thing, non-Hodgkin lymphoma is much more common. And you’re more likely to be diagnosed with it after age 55, like Bridges. People usually develop Hodgkin lymphoma at a younger age.
Age, Race, and Exposures Might All Factor Into Lymphoma Risk
Another difference between these two types of lymphoma is that non-Hodgkin lymphoma is more likely to spread in a random fashion and be found in different groups of lymph nodes in the body, while Hodgkin lymphoma is more likely to grow in a uniform way from one group of lymph nodes directly to another.
These two different types of lymphoma behave, spread and respond to treatment differently.
How Turning to Music Can Help Cancer Patients
Creating, listening, and even performing music can be a powerful tool. Most people have felt the positive effects of a musical experience, like Jeff Bridges, but fewer people know there is actually science to back it up.
RELATED: Singer LeAnn Rimes Holds Remarkable Candlelight Concert – The Healing Power of Music
Dr. Alexander Pantelyat, a neurologist at Johns Hopkins, told SurvivorNet in an earlier interview, “Just listening to music activates more brain regions simultaneously than any other human activity.”
A study published last year in the journal Parkinson’s Disease researched the effects music had on the brain. It found music can help reduce anxiety for patients. Dr. Serap Bastepe-Gray, who co-founded the Johns Hopkins Center for Music and Medicine with Dr. Pantelyat, led the study.
“The guitar, which is portable, affordable, and one of the most popular instruments in the U.S., has potential as a motivational therapeutic tool both in the clinical and community settings,” Dr. Bastepe-Gray said.
Music therapy is a resource cancer patients turn to during treatment. Music therapy includes “creating, singing, moving, listening and/or relaxing” to the sounds of your favorite songs according to the National Cancer Institute.
This form of therapy can help relieve depression, stress, anxiety, and pain.
Cancer Survivor Joel Naftelberg Learned to Dance on His Problems
Focusing on something you love is an important way to build resilience in the face of coping with cancer and chronic disease, psychiatrist Dr. Samantha Boardman previously told SurvivorNet. She explained what she calls the “three wellsprings of vitality,” which are connecting with others, contributing to the lives of others, and challenging yourself to continue growing.
“Those are the cores of vitality, and the core pathways to enhance your everyday resilience,” Dr. Boardman said.
Thriving Through and After Cancer
Studies prove that patients who are able to stay upbeat and positive often have better treatment outcomes. It doesn’t really matter what you do, but experts such as Dr. Dana Chase, a gynecologic oncologist at Arizona Oncology, recommend doing whatever makes you happy.
“We know from good studies that emotional health is associated with survival, meaning better quality of life is associated with better outcomes,” Chase told SurvivorNet in a previous interview.
“So working on your emotional health, your physical well-being, your social environment [and] your emotional well-being are important and can impact your survival. If that’s related to what activities you do that bring you joy, then you should try to do more of those activities.”
RELATED: Staying Active After a Cancer Diagnosis
“A positive attitude is really important,” Dr. Zuri Murrell, a colorectal surgeon at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles tells Survivornet.
If you have just been diagnosed with cancer, negative feelings are normal. Totally normal. Men and women react differently. Anger, shame, fear, anxiety. It’s to be expected. Experienced doctors will tell you that people who find a way to work through the emotions and stay positive do end up doing better.
“My patients who thrive, even with stage 4 cancer, from the time that they, about a month after they’re diagnosed, I kind of am pretty good at seeing who is going to be OK,” Dr. Murrell says.
“Now doesn’t that mean I’m good at saying that the cancer won’t grow. But I’m pretty good at telling what kind of patient are going to still have this attitude and probably going to live the longest, even with bad, bad disease. And those are patients who, they have gratitude in life.”
Contributing: SurvivorNet Staff
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