Bret Hart Cancer Reveal: WWE Hall of Famer Faces 'Toughest Battle'
- comments
Retired professional wrestler Bret Hart has revealed that he has cancer, NBC News reports. The 58-year-old former WWE star took to social media to announce his battle with the disease.
"It is with great remorse that I feel compelled to speak truthfully to my friends, family and my millions of fans around the world," Hart wrote. He briefly shared the challenges he faced during his career, including a concussion that forced him to end his career in the ring back in 1999. He also mentioned that he had undergone knee replacements, hernia operations, surgery on his right elbow, and a four-corner fusion on his right wrist, which makes it difficult for him to write or type.
"I've had a great lifelong dance and I'm a survivor of many hard battles. I now face my toughest battle. With hesitation and fear, I openly declare myself in my fight against prostate cancer," he wrote. "In the next few days, I will undergo surgery with the hope of defeating this nemesis once and for all."
"I make a solemn vow to all of those that once believed in me, the dead and the living, that I will wage my fearsome fight against cancer with one shield and one sword carrying my determination and my fury for life, emboldened by all the love that's kept me going this long already."
Outside the ring, Hart also began a career as a writer for the Calgary Sun, for which he wrote from 1991 to 2004. He also released an autobiography titled "Hitman: My Real Life in the Cartoon World of Wrestling," which was released in 2008.
Hart also began making film and television appearances, including those in "The Adventures of Sinbad," "Big Sound," and "The Immortal." Meanwhile, Hart also became a spokesperson for March of Dimes Canada's Stroke Recovery Canada program.
In a 2011 interview with Dirt and Glory Media, Hart talked about how impressed he was with the newer talents of the WWE, citing Randy Orton and John Cena as "great wrestlers." He claimed that like himself, Cena is a "great leader" who is dedicated and tries to be a hero.
Speaking of heroes, Hart credits his family for being supportive throughout his health struggles. According to People, Hart believes that by sharing his story, he can inspire other people to stay strong in the midst of a prostate cancer diagnosis, and not give up hope.
Read Hart's full message below, which he posted on his official Facebook account.
It is with great remorse that I feel compelled to speak truthfully to my friends, family and my millions of fans around...
Posted by Bret Hart on Monday, February 1, 2016