Written by Former Metallica bassist Jason Newsted has revealed more about his cancer diagnosis and ensuing treatment, following the news earlier this month that he had been given the all-clear from the disease after treating it in private.
Newsted, who played with Metallica from 1986 to 2001, received a confirmed throat cancer diagnosis in 2025, but was told that he is now cancer-free earlier this year following laser surgery last year. Newsted returned to the stage in November, making a special guest appearance with Atlanta rockers Blackberry Smoke in Ithaca, New York to jam Black Sabbath classic, Children Of The Grave.
“May of 2025, about 370 days ago or something, I had a procedure for throat cancer and they took tonsil, lymph nodes, and all this kind of thing out of here and it was a very harrowing type of thing,” he tells Eddie Trunk on Sirius XM. “I didn’t really tell anyone other than my family and closest circle. I didn’t want anybody to know. I wanted to keep it private until I knew what was going to happen. I got my free and clear a few weeks ago, and so that’s when I started talking about it and telling my friends about it.”
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Now, Newsted is gearing up to hit the road for the first time since beating cancer, with his band The Chophouse Band set to support Blackberry Smoke on tour later this year.
“I was betting on myself that I was going to heal and I was going to get better and I was going to be strong enough to do these shows,” he explains. “I kind of put it out there as an incentive thing, but also to prove to myself I could and to feel as alive as possible, because I’d never been that close to death before. And it was very eye-opening at the same time, and it makes you appreciate everything that you’ve had and the opportunities you’ve had and maybe you want to take some more opportunities while you’re able.
“That’s kind of where it’s at for me to feel as alive as possible is when I go out and sing and play and interact with the people,” he adds. “That’s the one thing that I miss the very most. It’s not the money. It’s not any of that shit. It’s not the trappings. It’s meeting the people.”
