Rocky star Dolph Lundgren gives health update 10 months after being declared cancer-free

Dolph Lundgrensays he is feeling “very well” after triumphing over cancer last year. “NED, they call it. No evidence of disease,” the Rocky star revealed at the BAFTA TV Tea Party in Beverly Hills.

The Swedish actor, 67, revealed he had privately battled cancer for eight years, first diagnosed with lung cancer in 2015. After going into remission, the cancer returned in 2020, and a doctor warned he had only two to three years left to live.

"It was a tough fight to have for about five years. Actually, about three bad years, but now it's better - so I'm back to normal, working out," he said.

While his workouts are now less intense, Lundgren insists he can still do “everything” he did before his diagnosis. The actor told People: "I've calmed down a little bit. I don't stay out as late. I don't work out as hard, but I do hit the gym four, five times a week. I am just a little kinder to myself physically, I think."

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He reflected on the perspective his illness brought in a recent social media update as he said: "Every day, I'm more grateful for everything I have and everything the universe has given me, and I try to really enjoy the people I love - my kids, my wife and my friends.

"It's been a big eye-opener and it's actually been a positive experience for me, I think. If I hadn't had cancer, I may have done a crazy stunt and killed myself that way, because I was just a little bit too intense before."

Lundgren, who shares daughters Ida, 29, and Greta, 23, with his first wife Anette Qviberg, married Emma Krokdal in 2023.

He has speculated that the steroids he took during his bodybuilding and action film career could have contributed to his illness.

"I tried steroids back in the '80s and '90s. I don't know if that is something to do with the cancer, of course it struck me as it could have something to do with it. I thought about it, you always think you've made a mistake. I think maybe there is some connection between testosterone therapy and cancer," he said in a previous social media post.

Discussing his 2020 relapse, Lundgren said: "In 2020, I was back in Sweden and I had some kind of acid reflux, I didn’t know what it was so I did an MRI.

"They found that there were a few more tumours around that area. They found one more tumour in the liver, so I was like, aw s*** okay. At that point, it started to hit me that this was something serious.

"The surgeon called me and said it had grown, it was too big, it had grown to the size of a small lemon. I asked them how long do I have left, I think he said two-three years but I could tell in his voice he thought it was less. I thought that was it for sure."

After a second opinion, Lundgren underwent treatment and surgery to remove multiple tumors, recalling: "It's the day after my surgery, they took out one tumor, then they took out another two they found and another three small ones. Hopefully it's cleaned out, if it dies, it dies."

He announced his victory last November in an emotional announcement. At the time, he wrote: "Health update - finally cancer free with gratefulness and excitement for a bright future. Thanks for all your support always."

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