Def Leppard's Vivian Campbell in remission after lengthy battle with Hodgkin's lymphoma

Def Leppard's Vivian Campbell is "completely clean" of cancer.
The 62-year-old rocker was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma in 2013, and after taking some time out to recover from treatment, he returned to the stage with the Pour Some Sugar On Me band in May.
After undergoing some "hardcore chemotherapy" and a successful bone marrow transplant, Campbell has revealed his PET scan in April showed no signs of cancer.
Speaking on SiriusXM's Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk, he said: "I've been very lucky, actually. I got an early diagnosis for Hodgkin's lymphoma 13 years ago, 12 years ago, something like that. [I went] through the mill with all sorts of chemo and immunotherapy and combination therapies, and 10 years ago I did an autologous stem cell transplant, which means using my own stem cells. That didn't work. The cancer kept coming back, and then a couple of years ago, it really got bad. So it was the first time in having to deal with it that I was seriously concerned about it. And the doctors told me really my only chance for of cure was to do a donor transplant. And that's exactly what I did. Starting last summer during our tour, I started doing more chemo in preparation for it. And then right after the tour, they started giving me very hardcore chemo leading up to the transplant. I was supposed to start after Thanksgiving, and I lost my donor 10 days beforehand. So that was a kick in the nuts. But I was very fortunate that they found me another one in December. And on New Year's Eve, I went into hospital. I was in for about three and a half weeks, and I did what has turned out to be a really, really successful transplant. So I did a PET scan in the middle of April and I'm a hundred percent clean, completely in remission for the first time in 12 or 13 years. And I am obviously overjoyed. You couldn't ask for more than that."
The guitarist hopes to buy his donor a beer one day to thank him for saving his life.
He said: "A young man, actually. I don't get to know who he is for a couple of years, but a 21-year-old man. And they always prefer a youthful donor. Obviously, I'm gonna buy him a beer — or two or three."
Campbell underwent immunotherapy treatment and was part of a clinical trial for the medication pembrolizumab amid his battle with the disease.
Speaking on the Lymphoma Voices podcast in 2023, he said: "I'm still dealing with the lymphoma.
"It's sort of like – it's an American expression – Whac-a-Mole. You beat something back and then it pops up somewhere else. But it's been a pretty consistent battle, but it hasn't been too difficult for me. I deal with it fine. I've been able to live my life.
"For the bulk of those 10 years, I actually was doing immunotherapy. Starting in June of 2015, I started taking a drug called pembrolizumab. I remember at the time my doctors wanted me to do radiation and maybe a combination of radiation and chemo. And I just thought, 'Well, let's just try this immunotherapy thing. Let's see if this works.' So I managed to get on the trial. I'm happy to say that it worked well for me."

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Courier-Mail

an hour ago

• Courier-Mail

Picture exposes Kate's huge Trump nightmare

Don't miss out on the headlines from Royals. Followed categories will be added to My News. COMMENT What. About. The. Lawn. In 2019 Donald and Melania Trump packed up their his and her medical-grade bronzer tubs and headed to London for a State visit, landing on the Buckingham Palace lawn in Marine One, the presidential helicopter. One was not amused. Days later Scott 'I don't hold the hose' Morrison visited the Palace and the late Queen, per the Times, 'marched him to a window to look out at the once green and pleasant grass and said: 'Come and look at my lawn. It's ruined.'' Let's hope the royal family's under gardeners are ready given that Mr Trump is set to return to London for an historic second State. (It is reportedly 'pencilled in' for September.) And let's hope that Kate, The Princess of Wales is already working on her game face for what will be the most charged, if not hardest, assignment of her royal career. Kate and Trump. Smiling side-by-side. Just imagine it. You can't quite, right? But this moment will happen, along with 98 other smiley, pose-y, 'say fromage for the cameras' instances during the visit, during which Mr Trump will try and impress the princess with big talk of his putting game and she will attempt to explain why her father-in-law is not interested in invading Iceland. What a meeting of minds. And what diplomatic heroics will the expected of Kate as she faces assuming a major role for the trip. Kate during a State Banquet at Buckingham Palace on June 3, 2019, on the first day of Trump's State Visit to the UK. Picture: Victoria Jones/pool/AFP Queen Elizabeth with Trump during his 2019 State Visit to the UK. Picture: Victoria Jones/Pool/AFP In 2019, the last time that the Trumps and their individual hair care crates were in the UK, Kate was the Duchess of Cambridge, a significant place removed from the throne. Back then, she and Prince William were able to fly under the radar and take relatively back seat roles. Her responsibilities extended entirely to sourcing an Alexander McQueen gown and remembering to wash her hair or the State dinner. Not this time. If the 2025 trip is anything like the one six years ago, as the Prince and Princess of Wales, William and Kate will be expected to host the Trumps for tea and to step up to help King Charles and Queen Camilla shoulder the hoisting load during the scheduled-to-the-millisecond, multi-day Cirque du Soleil-level formal production. Queen Camilla winking. Picture: X Kate might have a few State visits as a princess under her belt (South Africa, South Korea, Japan and Qatar) but nothing like this year's American one given the involvement of the world's most famous McNugget consumer. William and Kate at a ceremonial welcome for The President and the First Lady of the Republic of Korea in London. Picture: Chris Jackson –Even months out, the Trump visit is already shaping up to be the most charged State event of Kate's 14 years on the royal clock, surpassing that time in 2015 when China's President Xi Jingping turned up for his go in a gold carriage down The Mall and faced protesters. (Courtiers no doubt all let out a collective sigh of relief that Prince Philip was several hours away in Norfolk glueing together an Airfix model of a Spitfire and couldn't be bothered to try out any new material.) For this visit, the demands put on William and Kate for a note perfect performance will be that much greater. Princess Kate is seen walking well behind Donald Trump in footage from 2019. Picture: YouTube The prince has already gotten a taste of this, having what was by all accounts a very warm and chummy meeting with Trump in Paris in December last year. (William does know something about being an apprentice after all.) Trump meets Prince William on December 7, 2024 in Paris, France. Picture: Aaron Chown – Pool/Getty Images The success of that face-to-face speaks to the demands put on working members to put aside all personal thought and feeling and to quiescently do what Whitehall asks of them. After all, William's marquee project is The Earthshot Prize, giving away nearly $100 million to creative and exciting climate crisis solutions; the Trump administration is opening up Millions of acres of Alaskan wilderness to drilling and mining. For Kate and William, this US State visit will be a major taste of what lies ahead for them – having to do the glad-handing bidding of Downing Street. (State visits are organised at the request of the government of the day, not based on who the sovereign fancies having over for a Scotch Finger.) Kings and Queens are required to remain blandly, politically neutral at all times, to be perpetually smiling milquetoast automatons in good quality wool separates. Their personal tastes, preferences and ideological inclinations can and will never enter the equation. Come September, the realpolitik demanded of royalty will be on full display. Even then, no matter how much hot air there will be coming out of governmental and royal functionaires about special relationships, the rest of the UK's 68 million people might not feel the same way. William and Kate will be working their smiling muscles and playing very very nice with the Cousins but on the streets of the capital public feeling could be running high. Mr Trump's trips to the UK in 2018 and 2019 were met with large-scale public resistance. There were mass protests, nearly 1.9 million people signed a petition opposing his visit; newly knighted London mayor Sir Sadiq Khan forcefully denounced the president; and then speaker of the House of Commons John Bercow barred him from addressing parliament. Anti-Trump demonstrators hold placards as they protest outside of Buckingham Palace in central London on June 3, 2019. Picture: Tolga Akmen/AFP Queen Elizabeth II laughed with Donald Trump during a State Banquet in 2019. Picture: Dominic Lipinski/Pool/AFP Things already sound a tad tense. Meeting Mr Trump's 'sky high' expectations of the visit is reportedly proving quite the royal headache. Tim Shipman, the Sunday Times' chief political commentator, reported this week that the Palace and Downing Street 'have struggled to agree the details [of the trip] with the White House'. Unlike say Mr Xi who got to enjoy the pomp of being jostled and jigged in a wooden coach around central London beside the late Queen, 'officials say Trump is a far bigger assassination threat and there is no coach sufficiently armoured to allow him to use it.' There is also the question of where to stash Mr and Mrs Trump. Buckingham Palace is in the midst of a ten-year renovation and King Charles has, and may very well never, live there. Adding another possibly testy element – Charles is the King of Canada, a country that Mr Trump has threatened to annex. A visit earlier this month to Ottawa saw the King very obviously demonstrate his support for the country, and his speech to their parliament was 'a coded rebuke to Trump's expansionist urges,' per the Times. Unlikely to impress the president either is that French President Emmanuel Macron is set to get his own royal State visit months before the American one. 'It is an open secret,' Shipman wrote, 'that the King is happy' about this trumping. Egos, a lack of carriages, dogs, aides, renovations, helicopters, dinners, finger sandwiches, nerves, sensitivities: There is a lot involved in the Trumps' arrival, any – all – of it could go pear-shaped and Kate will be at the heart of things. Lucky girl. There is one perfect moment though that, let us pray, gets recreated somehow. In 2019, Queen Camilla went viral after being caught on camera winking behind Mr Trump's back. Oooh errrr Your Majesty. Give us another one, please. Daniela Elser is a writer, editor and commentator with more than 15 years' experience working with a number of Australia's leading media titles. Originally published as Picture exposes Kate's Trump nightmare

7NEWS

3 hours ago

• 7NEWS

Geelong's T-shirt stunt receives mixed reviews from AFL fans

Geelong's white T-shirt stunt ahead of superstar Patrick Dangerfield's 350th game on Friday night has divided the AFL world. The powerhouse club told fans they would be contributing to a 'slice of history' but the nod to US sports and college football, according to many, missed the mark. In a bid to transform GMHBA Stadium into 'a sea of white', Geelong had 'a free collectable T-shirt' placed on every seat for the blockbuster clash with Brisbane. And fans got in the spirit early, waving and wearing the items as the team ran out on the ground to great fanfare. 'A white-out down here in Geelong ... these are great scenes,' star commentator James Brayshaw said as the broadcast showed the vision of the crowd. But it didn't take long before things fell flat as the Lions sucked the air out of the occasion before powering along to an emphatic 41-point victory. And the club was immediately mocked, with many suggesting the T-shirts were symbolic of 'waving the white flag' or throwing in the white towel (common acts of surrendering). 'The way they played it looked like they were waving white flags of surrender,' one fan said on social media. 'Waving the White Flag before the game even started,' said another. And another: 'White out turning into a whitewash.' And another: 'I didn't have high expectations for the white T-shirt thing but it's looking pretty average.' And another: 'Conceded the first 4 of the game, wave the white flag.' While another raged: 'Cheap tatty cotton on tees in the bin after tonight's pathetic game.' Fans also questioned the Americanisation of the game. 'Why would we want to copy American sports???' one fan asked And another: '(It's part of) the AFL's desperation to Americanise the game.' While another said, 'I pray my club never does this, 'and another called it an 'Absolute cringe ****fest.' But the reviews weren't all negative. Popular sports account Bear said: 'I absolutely love this and it makes me sad Melbourne will never be able to do something like this. Shoutout Geelong.' And another: 'Hate Geelong as much as the next Hawks fan but god damn those white shirts in the crowd look good.' Maybe if the Cats had won the take on the tees would have been more positive.

The Advertiser

9 hours ago

• The Advertiser

Diddy's ex-assistant bought drugs, set up sex parties

Sean 'Diddy' Combs' former personal assistant hasa testified at the hip-hop mogul's sex trafficking trial that he often bought drugs for his boss and set up hotel rooms for sex parties known as "wild king nights." Prosecutors hope Friday's testimony by Brendan Paul, who worked for Combs from late 2022 through March 2024, will help them prove their racketeering conspiracy charge against Combs. Prosecutors say Combs used his businesses' resources to coerce women into ecstasy-fueled sexual performances with male sex workers. Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to all five criminal counts. His lawyers call the sexual activity consensual. The Bad Boy Records founder, a former billionaire who elevated hip-hop in American culture, could face life in prison if convicted. Prosecutors are winding down their case after six weeks, with defence witnesses expected to testify next week. Paul, testifying under immunity from prosecutors, said he bought Combs about $US4200 ($A6500) of marijuana and hundreds of dollars of ketamine during his employment. Jurors saw a text message in which Paul asked Combs' security staff to be reimbursed for his drug purchases. They also saw a February 14, 2024 text message in which Combs wrote "You get me zans," which Paul said was a request to procure Xanax without a prescription. Paul said Combs ultimately obtained Xanax elsewhere, and used cocaine and ecstasy in his presence. Under cross-examination by defence lawyer Brian Steel, Paul said procuring drugs was a minor part of his job, and he thought the drugs were solely for Combs' personal use. "You were not some drug mule?" Steel asked. "Absolutely not," Paul said. Paul also said that before three or four "wild king nights," he stocked hotel rooms with lubricant, baby oil, liquor and a Gucci pouch filled with hard drugs. When Combs was done, Paul said he would put on gloves and clean up to avoid being billed by hotels for damage. Paul said he was charged with cocaine possession after being arrested on March 25, 2024, at Miami-Opa Locka airport in Florida while traveling to the Bahamas with Combs and other staffers. He said he put the cocaine in his bag after finding it while cleaning Combs' room that day, but forgot about it and did not tell law enforcement where it came from. Asked by prosecutor Christy Slavik why he kept silent, Paul said, "Loyalty." Paul said the cocaine charge was dropped. Sean 'Diddy' Combs' former personal assistant hasa testified at the hip-hop mogul's sex trafficking trial that he often bought drugs for his boss and set up hotel rooms for sex parties known as "wild king nights." Prosecutors hope Friday's testimony by Brendan Paul, who worked for Combs from late 2022 through March 2024, will help them prove their racketeering conspiracy charge against Combs. Prosecutors say Combs used his businesses' resources to coerce women into ecstasy-fueled sexual performances with male sex workers. Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to all five criminal counts. His lawyers call the sexual activity consensual. The Bad Boy Records founder, a former billionaire who elevated hip-hop in American culture, could face life in prison if convicted. Prosecutors are winding down their case after six weeks, with defence witnesses expected to testify next week. Paul, testifying under immunity from prosecutors, said he bought Combs about $US4200 ($A6500) of marijuana and hundreds of dollars of ketamine during his employment. Jurors saw a text message in which Paul asked Combs' security staff to be reimbursed for his drug purchases. They also saw a February 14, 2024 text message in which Combs wrote "You get me zans," which Paul said was a request to procure Xanax without a prescription. Paul said Combs ultimately obtained Xanax elsewhere, and used cocaine and ecstasy in his presence. Under cross-examination by defence lawyer Brian Steel, Paul said procuring drugs was a minor part of his job, and he thought the drugs were solely for Combs' personal use. "You were not some drug mule?" Steel asked. "Absolutely not," Paul said. Paul also said that before three or four "wild king nights," he stocked hotel rooms with lubricant, baby oil, liquor and a Gucci pouch filled with hard drugs. When Combs was done, Paul said he would put on gloves and clean up to avoid being billed by hotels for damage. Paul said he was charged with cocaine possession after being arrested on March 25, 2024, at Miami-Opa Locka airport in Florida while traveling to the Bahamas with Combs and other staffers. He said he put the cocaine in his bag after finding it while cleaning Combs' room that day, but forgot about it and did not tell law enforcement where it came from. Asked by prosecutor Christy Slavik why he kept silent, Paul said, "Loyalty." Paul said the cocaine charge was dropped. Sean 'Diddy' Combs' former personal assistant hasa testified at the hip-hop mogul's sex trafficking trial that he often bought drugs for his boss and set up hotel rooms for sex parties known as "wild king nights." Prosecutors hope Friday's testimony by Brendan Paul, who worked for Combs from late 2022 through March 2024, will help them prove their racketeering conspiracy charge against Combs. Prosecutors say Combs used his businesses' resources to coerce women into ecstasy-fueled sexual performances with male sex workers. Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to all five criminal counts. His lawyers call the sexual activity consensual. The Bad Boy Records founder, a former billionaire who elevated hip-hop in American culture, could face life in prison if convicted. Prosecutors are winding down their case after six weeks, with defence witnesses expected to testify next week. Paul, testifying under immunity from prosecutors, said he bought Combs about $US4200 ($A6500) of marijuana and hundreds of dollars of ketamine during his employment. Jurors saw a text message in which Paul asked Combs' security staff to be reimbursed for his drug purchases. They also saw a February 14, 2024 text message in which Combs wrote "You get me zans," which Paul said was a request to procure Xanax without a prescription. Paul said Combs ultimately obtained Xanax elsewhere, and used cocaine and ecstasy in his presence. Under cross-examination by defence lawyer Brian Steel, Paul said procuring drugs was a minor part of his job, and he thought the drugs were solely for Combs' personal use. "You were not some drug mule?" Steel asked. "Absolutely not," Paul said. Paul also said that before three or four "wild king nights," he stocked hotel rooms with lubricant, baby oil, liquor and a Gucci pouch filled with hard drugs. When Combs was done, Paul said he would put on gloves and clean up to avoid being billed by hotels for damage. Paul said he was charged with cocaine possession after being arrested on March 25, 2024, at Miami-Opa Locka airport in Florida while traveling to the Bahamas with Combs and other staffers. He said he put the cocaine in his bag after finding it while cleaning Combs' room that day, but forgot about it and did not tell law enforcement where it came from. Asked by prosecutor Christy Slavik why he kept silent, Paul said, "Loyalty." Paul said the cocaine charge was dropped. Sean 'Diddy' Combs' former personal assistant hasa testified at the hip-hop mogul's sex trafficking trial that he often bought drugs for his boss and set up hotel rooms for sex parties known as "wild king nights." Prosecutors hope Friday's testimony by Brendan Paul, who worked for Combs from late 2022 through March 2024, will help them prove their racketeering conspiracy charge against Combs. Prosecutors say Combs used his businesses' resources to coerce women into ecstasy-fueled sexual performances with male sex workers. Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to all five criminal counts. His lawyers call the sexual activity consensual. The Bad Boy Records founder, a former billionaire who elevated hip-hop in American culture, could face life in prison if convicted. Prosecutors are winding down their case after six weeks, with defence witnesses expected to testify next week. Paul, testifying under immunity from prosecutors, said he bought Combs about $US4200 ($A6500) of marijuana and hundreds of dollars of ketamine during his employment. Jurors saw a text message in which Paul asked Combs' security staff to be reimbursed for his drug purchases. They also saw a February 14, 2024 text message in which Combs wrote "You get me zans," which Paul said was a request to procure Xanax without a prescription. Paul said Combs ultimately obtained Xanax elsewhere, and used cocaine and ecstasy in his presence. Under cross-examination by defence lawyer Brian Steel, Paul said procuring drugs was a minor part of his job, and he thought the drugs were solely for Combs' personal use. "You were not some drug mule?" Steel asked. "Absolutely not," Paul said. Paul also said that before three or four "wild king nights," he stocked hotel rooms with lubricant, baby oil, liquor and a Gucci pouch filled with hard drugs. When Combs was done, Paul said he would put on gloves and clean up to avoid being billed by hotels for damage. Paul said he was charged with cocaine possession after being arrested on March 25, 2024, at Miami-Opa Locka airport in Florida while traveling to the Bahamas with Combs and other staffers. He said he put the cocaine in his bag after finding it while cleaning Combs' room that day, but forgot about it and did not tell law enforcement where it came from. Asked by prosecutor Christy Slavik why he kept silent, Paul said, "Loyalty." Paul said the cocaine charge was dropped.