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'Dancing with the Stars' Judge Diagnosed with Cancer
http://www.buddytv.com/articles/dancing-with-the-stars/dancing-with...
Len Goodman, head judge on Strictly Come Dancing and the its American version, Dancing with the Stars, has been diagnosed with a cancerous tumor in his prostate gland --- a condition he first discovered in March but decided not have the treatment until after he had finished filming Dancing with the Stars. Now, the 65-year-old ballroom dancing teacher is recovering from surgery, which he underwent three weeks ago without telling any of his colleagues.
"I have had the surgery now. Everything is gorgeously good. I will be back in September for sure," the Dancing with the Stars judge told the Telegraph, crediting his swift recovery to doctors spotting the disease early at his annual check-up.
Goodman reveals that he kept the operation a secret, which was done by urologist Peter Thompson at a Bupa hospital in Blackheath, South-East London, because he felt it was "not necessary to blabber it out to everyone." He also says that he feared BBC producers might not want a "cancer-riddled, bed-ridden old so-and-so" so he didn't tell them.
"I could have said 'sorry' and not done the show[Dancing with the Stars], but the doctors felt I wasn't riddled with it and it wasn't so far advanced that it was a life-or-death scenario," he added. "It takes a few weeks to get everything set up for the operation anyway, so I went ahead and did the show. I had the surgery done as soon as I got back from America."
And now that he's on the road to recovery, Goodman says he's better than ever.
"I feel good," he said. "I was obviously worried at the start. We all worry if we get something like this. You do feel a bit vulnerable, but as long as you come out the other side all right, why worry? You're a bit sore for a while and you can't play golf, which is the biggest blow at the moment. But I will be able to in a month's time or so, I can't wait."
Len Goodman, head judge on Strictly Come Dancing and the its American version, Dancing with the Stars, has been diagnosed with a cancerous tumor in his prostate gland --- a condition he first discovered in March but decided not have the treatment until after he had finished filming Dancing with the Stars. Now, the 65-year-old ballroom dancing teacher is recovering from surgery, which he underwent three weeks ago without telling any of his colleagues.
"I have had the surgery now. Everything is gorgeously good. I will be back in September for sure," the Dancing with the Stars judge told the Telegraph, crediting his swift recovery to doctors spotting the disease early at his annual check-up.
Goodman reveals that he kept the operation a secret, which was done by urologist Peter Thompson at a Bupa hospital in Blackheath, South-East London, because he felt it was "not necessary to blabber it out to everyone." He also says that he feared BBC producers might not want a "cancer-riddled, bed-ridden old so-and-so" so he didn't tell them.
"I could have said 'sorry' and not done the show[Dancing with the Stars], but the doctors felt I wasn't riddled with it and it wasn't so far advanced that it was a life-or-death scenario," he added. "It takes a few weeks to get everything set up for the operation anyway, so I went ahead and did the show. I had the surgery done as soon as I got back from America."
And now that he's on the road to recovery, Goodman says he's better than ever.
"I feel good," he said. "I was obviously worried at the start. We all worry if we get something like this. You do feel a bit vulnerable, but as long as you come out the other side all right, why worry? You're a bit sore for a while and you can't play golf, which is the biggest blow at the moment. But I will be able to in a month's time or so, I can't wait."
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by S.C. on -
I'm glad to hear that this tumor was caught early. My dad was successfully treated for prostate cancer. Estimates are that 1 in 7 men will develop this cancer, so please recommend that your male loved ones age 40 and older have the screening on an annual basis so that the tumors may be successfully arrested.
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Permalink Reply by Bil Walker on
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I am happy that a man such as you, Mr Goodman, has had the thinking it took to do what you loved, first
handling your responsibilities with "Dancing with the Stars" and then quietly, the necessary surgery. Congratulations on the future recovery...I say this for I feel it WILL be a success.
We all should learn from you!
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