Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi says his cancer fight likely is not over.
Iommi was diagnosed with lymphoma in early 2012, shortly after Black Sabbath's original lineup announced a reunion. Iommi underwent treatment while recording the band's swan song album, 13, and subsequent tour.
Throughout the process, he has been forthright about how much cancer treatment has sapped him of his energy and forced him to retire from touring. But he says he realizes how fortunate he is to still be here.
"Well, to me, it's never gonna go away; it's always gonna be there," he told Loudwire. "According to my oncologist, the professor, he said it's probably gonna come back. So it's hard to sort of go, 'Oh, well, that's brilliant then.' But I do live [day] by day now, and just every day is a winner, really. And we'll see. I hope it doesn't come back, but you never know."
The guitar hero says he got very little rest while touring over the past few years, so now is a good time to catch up.
"I love playing on the road, I love being in the band, I love playing to the fans, but it's just the other side," he said. "You can only do what you can do and your physical side takes over and you get tired. And after doing so many shows, I really did get tired."
Blabbermouth.net notes that Ozzy Osbourne said in 2014 of Iommi that he never let the condition slow him down or affect his performance.
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