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The Dude abides.
Beloved “The Big Lebowski” star Jeff Bridges shared that his cancer is in remission in a blog post on Monday — and after battling both lymphoma and COVID-19 over the past year, he has this to say:
““My dance with COVID makes my cancer look like a piece of cake.” ”
The Oscar winner, now 71, first revealed that he had lymphoma last October, which drew an outpouring of love and support from fellow actors and fans. Bridges has been keeping followers apprised of his progress on his website. And his latest post reveals that while his prognosis is looking good now, catching COVID-19 while undergoing chemotherapy brought him “close to the pearly gates.”
Bridges believes that he was exposed to the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19 at the place where he was receiving his chemo treatments. While his wife spent five days in the hospital with COVID-19, Bridges was hospitalized for five weeks because his immune system was “shot” from the chemo, he says.
“COVID kicked my ass pretty good, but I’m double vaccinated [and] feeling much better now,” he writes. “I heard that the vaccine can help folks with Long Haulers [aka suffering long-term COVID symptoms and side effects.] Maybe that’s the cause of my quick improvement,” he added, referring to some other long haulers who have reported feeling better after getting one of the COVID vaccines.
What’s more, he had a tumor that was 9 inches by 12 inches, which he says has shrunk down to the size of a marble. “My cancer is in remission,” he writes. “My COVID is in the rear view mirror.”
Related: Jeff Bridges is one of the 85,000-plus lymphoma cases expected in the U.S. this year
While Bridges recently needed oxygen assistance to keep breathing, he’s been working with a therapist to get stronger. And he was able to walk his youngest daughter down the aisle and dance with her at her wedding without oxygen, he says. He even shared a video of the father-daughter dance in his post.
The “Crazy Heart” actor has come through both medical ordeals with a greater appreciation for life, he writes. “The brush with mortality has brought me a real gift — life is brief [and] beautiful. Love is all around us, [and] available [at] all times,” he writes.
His uplifting post comes as the U.S. is still averaging more than 170,000 new COVID cases a day, and more than 1,800 deaths.
