Def Leppard guitarist Vivian Campbell says that his cancer has returned.
In June 2025, the 63-year-old Irish guitarist reported that he was “completely in remission” from Hodgkin lymphoma, the blood cancer with which he was diagnosed in 2013. Speaking with Eddie Trunk on his SiriusXM show Trunk Nation, Campbell said “doctors told me really my only chance for [a] cure was to do a donor [stem cell] transplant. And that’s exactly what I did.”
But in a new interview conducted with Francisco Sigüenza of El Salvador’s Radio YSKL FM (as reported by Blabbermouth), the former Sweet Savage, Dio and Whitesnake guitarist reveals that the transplant “didn’t stick”, and that the cancer is back.
“There’s only been one time that I felt it was gonna kill me,” Campbell admits. “In the winter of 2023, I got really scared about what was happening and the pace at which it was happening. And I realized at that point that I had to do a donor transplant. It was my only hope to survive. And that’s what I did. I did that in January of ’25. I did a donor transplant. Unfortunately, it didn’t stick. So the cancer has returned. And I’m continuing treatments to manage it.
“I’ll probably have to do another transplant within a few years with another donor to try and see if maybe that would cure me,” he says. “But in the meantime, I’m certainly not slowing down. I’m doing as much with my life as possible, not just with Def Leppard and with [side project] Last In Line I’m also rally driving, ’cause I always wanted to do that. So I’ve been doing that more and more, ’cause I love cars and I love driving
“Life is for the living,” Campbell adds. “And I encourage everyone to look after their own health. And if you are unfortunate enough to get a cancer diagnosis to overcome the fear. Fear is inevitable when you’re first told those words. But once you get over that, you gotta realize just how to manage it and how to deal with it as best as possible, and just don’t give in.”
“I have met people in my life who, when they’ve gotten a cancer diagnosis, they’ve only focused on that,” the guitarist notes. “And they think, ‘Oh, I can’t do anything. I need to stay in bed. I can’t eat this. I can’t do that. I can’t go there.’ I’ve never felt that way. I’ve always felt like I’m gonna continue to live my life as much as possible. In fact, even more so.”
Def Leppard will tour South America in October/November, calling at:
Oct 17: Queretaro Autodroma Queretaro, MEX
Oct 19: Mexico City Palacio de los Deportes, MEX
Oct 21: Guadalajara, Arena VFG Guadalajara, MEX
Oct 24: San Salvador Estadio Cuscatlan, SLV
Oct 27: Alajuela Parque Viva, CRI
Oct 30: Quito Estadio Olimpico Atahualpa, ECU
Nov 02: Bogota Movistar Arena, COL
Nov 05: Buenos Aires, Movistar Arena, ARG
Nov 08: Santiago Movistar Arena, CHL
(LouderSound)
Leave a Reply