Ricki Rockett, the drummer for rock band Poison, was staring down the barrel of one of the most terrifying things anyone would ever have to deal with.
He was battling cancer, and things just weren't working for him. Both chemotherapy and radiotherapy failed to work on the cells. Then, the doctors suggested a terrifying finality - they might need to remove his tongue.
Per the New York Post, this got him thinking... how could he use his time best? "I was recording pieces of information for my kids so they could watch it, because the next step was to cut my tongue out if they had to," Rockett explained.
For most parents, being able to talk to their kids is one of the greatest joys in life. But for Rockett, all he wanted was for them to "know what I sounded like".
The rock drummer also wanted his kids to hear his "advice to them growing up" - "I wanted them to hear it from me," he explained. "I wanted them to understand what I was, what I thought I was or would become".
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10 Years On, the Rock Drummer Reflected on How the Cancer Affected Him
The rock drummer tragically thought that he had "a 40 or 50 percent chance of living". He opened up about just how much the cancer affected him in his memoir.
After his diagnosis came from a sore throat that just wouldn't let up back in 2015, his condition had deteriorated fast. "Before long, I couldn't eat solid food anymore. My weight dropped dramatically because all I could managed was soup, shakes, and water. Eventually, I couldn't eat or drink anything at all."
He recalled one terrifying moment with his condition that made his son "terrified". "My son had to watch tears running down my cheeks as I tried to eat a spoonful of soup".
But, it's been 10 years since his diagnosis - and, miraculously, he is now cancer-free. There are still remnants of it - but he's nevertheless grateful for being alive. "Sometimes my voice gets rough, or I get dry."
"I get very dry because my salivary glands got toasted with the radiation. But I'm cancer-free, and I've been cancer free for 10 years."
