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 Beastie Boys member, MCA (real name: Adam Yauch), announced via a video posted on their official website Monday (July 20) that he has cancer.
However, the founding member of the hip-hop trio described the illness as a "very treatable" cancerous tumor in his salivary gland.
The announcement also included the news that their upcoming tour and new album would be pushed back, while MCA received treatment.
"The reason we're here talking is because I have some pretty heavy news to say," Yauch said in the video. "About two months ago, I started feeling this little lump in my throat, like what you would feel if you have swollen glands or something like that ... and so I didn't really think it was anything. But then recently, when we were over in Europe doing promotion, I started to think that I should talk to my doctor, so I ... saw him when I got back, and he sent me to a specialist. They did tests, and I actually have a form of cancer in the gland that's over here, in the parotid gland, and it's also in the lymph node right in that area."
MCA will undergo surgery and other treatments, but the statement says his vocal cords will not be affected. His treatment is said to begin next week and doctors are optimistic that he should make a full recovery.
"The good news is, they did scans of my whole body and it's only localized in this one area, and it's not in a place that affects my voice, so ... that's nice. That's convenient," he laughed. "So it's a little bit of a setback -- it's a pain in the ass -- but this is something that's very treatable, and in most cases ... they're able to completely get rid of it, and people don't have continuing problems with it, and they've caught it early and it's not anywhere else in my body. So, that's the good news."
The Beastie Boys trio were preparing the release of a new album titled Hot Sauce Committee, Part One, as well as a tour to go along with it. Those plans have been put on hold.
Stay tuned for updates.
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