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After “Rocky IV”, Dolph Lundgren and Sylvester Stallone found themselves in the “Expendables” saga and even in “Creed 2”.
PEOPLE – It’s a fight he’s been fighting for nine years. Dolph Lundgren, best known for his role as Ivan Drago, the big bad of Rocky IV (1985), had been diagnosed with cancer kidney in 2015. The Swedish actor, who hid his illness for a long time, spoke out ahead of his last surgical operation.
Treated at the UCLA University Hospital in Los Angeles, considered one of the best hospitals in the UNITED STATEShe posted a video on Instagram (see below), just before his lung ablation.
“I’m about to have this last tumor removed”says Dolph Lundgren. “And since there are no more cancer cells in my body, I guess I will be cancer free, so I am looking forward to this procedure”he confides.
Since his diagnosis, Dolph Lundgren has continued to act in films, including both Aquaman by James Wan. He even found Sylvester Stallone and Rocky Balboa in Creed 2.
“It’s been a tough journey and it’s really taught me to live in the moment and enjoy every moment of life. It’s the only way out of this.” he concluded before leaving for the operating room.
A life-saving change in treatment
In the description of the publication, written after the procedure, he declares that he is cured: “finally cancer free, I am grateful and excited for a bright future”. The actor also thanks the people who supported him.
Suffering from kidney cancer since 2015, Dolph Lundgren only revealed his kidney cancer last year on the show In Depth With Graham Bensinger. In it, the interpreter of Ivan Drago confided that after years of monitoring his illness via scanners, he had undergone a first surgical intervention in 2020.
A doctor then found another tumor in his liver, advising him to spend more time with his loved ones. “I asked him, ‘How much time do you think I have left?’ I think he said “two or three years,” but I could tell in his voice that he probably thought it was less.”conceded the actor.
Dolph Lundgren, however, began seeking a second medical opinion. Oncologist Alexandre Drakaki then advised him to change his treatment, targeting a mutation in his disease that is rather common in patients diagnosed with lung cancer.
“If I had followed the other treatment, I would have about three or four months left”he detailed. “ I couldn’t believe the difference would be so huge, but in three months the cancer decreased by 20-30%,” rejoiced the actor who now wants to work for the prevention of the illness which affected him.
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