Megadeth's Dave Mustaine Reveals He Is "100 Percent" Cancer-Free At London Concert [Video]

Dave Mustaine of Megadeth announced during a concert at London’s SSE Arena on Friday that he is now “100 percent” cancer-free. The news comes nearly eight months after the former Metallica guitarist shared his initial throat cancer diagnosis.

About halfway through the concert, Mustaine reminded the crowd of his diagnosis from last year, which came right as Megadeth was recording the follow-up album to 2016’s Dystopia. “At first I thought, ‘Am I afraid?'” Mustaine reminisced. “And then I said, ‘No. I’m fucking pissed.’ And we stopped the record, we stopped everything.”

Two months ago, Mustaine updated fans on his progress, saying that he had finished all necessary treatment and was beginning rehabilitation. On Friday, he informed the crowd that he had undergone 51 radiation treatments and nine chemotherapy treatments after being diagnosed last year. He noted that his determination to beat the disease came from his intense desire to play his music again, and also emphasized how powerful of an asset prayer has been for him.

“I know a lot of you guys know that I pray,” he told the crowd. “I say that in [Megadeth’s] ‘Peace Sells’. I pray every day. I say that in the song. I’ve said it since the second record. But I thought about you guys every day, too. And I thought about my family. And I got this power from you guys. And I just kept thinking about it. And on October 16th, I went to go see the doctor, and he said, ‘You’re 100 percent free of cancer.’”

Watch fan-shot video of Megadeth’s performance on January 31st at London’s SSE Arena below:

Megadeth – SSE Arena – 1/31/20 – Full Video

[Video: Ohcantona Gigs]

Megadeth’s European tour continues through February with stops in Germany, Poland, Czech Republic, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, Hungary, and Bulgaria. The band has not offered any updates on the untitled album that was postponed due to Mustaine’s illness. Mustaine is also gearing up to release the book Building The Perfect Beast, which chronicles the band’s 1990 debut album, Rust In Peace, along with author Joel Selvin. The book is due out September 8th. News and information can be found on the band’s website.

[H/T Rolling Stone]