Richard Simmons revealed he was diagnosed with skin cancer in an emotional Facebook post after discovering a ‘strange looking bump’ under his right eye.
After calling a dermatologist, the 75-year-old fitness trailblazer recalled feeling ‘a little bit nervous’ after the doctor ‘looked at it through a magnifying mirror.’
‘He told me he would have to scrape it and put it under the microscope,’ the New Orleans native told his fans. ‘He comes back about 20 minutes later and says the C word.’
He continued: ‘I asked him what kind of cancer and he said. Basel Cell Carcinoma. I told him to stop calling me dirty names. He laughed.’
Richard Simmons revealed he was diagnosed with skin cancer in an emotional Facebook post after discovering a ‘strange looking bump’ under his right eye
Simmons was then told he had to go to ‘a cancer doctor right away.’
To treat the cancer, he said his doctor explained that he needed ‘to burn’ his ‘skin to remove the cancer cells.’
‘There was no numbing it just had to be done with a small instrument,’ the actor detailed. ‘As he started burning my skin a tear dropped down my cheek. You can’t cry during this and he wiped my tear. The burning really hurt my skin. It lasted about 30 minutes.’
Following the procedure, he was told to return in an hour and a half to see if they ‘got it all out.’
‘After driving around the city, I went back to some sad news,’ he noted. ‘I didn’t get it all out. He burned my face again. This time was worse than before…It was deeper. I did not cry this time but I did grit my teeth.’
Simmons then teased that the rest of his story will be ‘continued’ in another post.
Earlier this week, his representative assured fans that the star was ‘healthy and not dying’ after the star sparked concern with a cryptic post about mortality on Monday.
To treat the cancer, he said his doctor explained that he needed ‘to burn’ his ‘skin to remove the cancer cells’
‘There was no numbing it just had to be done with a small instrument,’ the actor detailed. ‘As he started burning my skin a tear dropped down my cheek. You can’t cry during this and he wiped my tear. The burning really hurt my skin. It lasted about 30 minutes’ (pictured in 2013)