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A nationally-published, award-winning journalist, Alex Biese joined the CURE team as an assistant managing editor in April 2023. Prior to that, Alex's work was published in outlets including the Chicago Sun-Times, MTV.com, USA TODAY and the Press of Atlantic City. Alex is a member of NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ+ Journalists, and also performs at the Jersey Shore with the acoustic jam band Somewhat Relative.
From producer Quincy Jones’ death from pancreatic cancer to an inspiring moment between The Rock and a fan at a store, here’s what’s happening in the cancer space this week.
Quincy Jones reportedly died of pancreatic cancer.
Iconic composer and music producer Quincy Jones’ cause of death has been revealed to have been pancreatic cancer, according to a report.
Jones died on Nov. 3 at the age of 91. His death certificate, obtained from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, listed the cause as pancreatic cancer, according to a report from TMZ.
A 28-time Grammy winner, Jones may best be remembered as the producer of Michael Jackson’s blockbuster albums “Off the Wall” (1979) and “Thriller” (1982). According to Billboard, in lieu of flowers, Jones’ family has asked for donations to be made to the Jazz Foundation of America.
Mike Peters of the Alarm’s cancer has returned.
Mike Peters, frontman of Welsh rockers the Alarm, has revealed that his case of Richter’s syndrome, described by the BBC as an aggressive lymphoma, has returned. Peters, 65, previously made headlines with the announcement in October that he was in remission from the blood cancer complication.
Peters canceled an American concert tour earlier this year after receiving a diagnosis of Richter’s Syndrome in April. Peters received a diagnosis of non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 1995, then chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) in 2005, which relapsed in 2015 and again in 2022.
Peters, according to a report from the BBC, is now undergoing chemotherapy and hopes to begin treatment with CAR-T cell therapy. He and his wife, Jules, have launched the Love Hope Strength Foundation, which has the One in a Million campaign to double the number of registered potential stem cell donors.
According to The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, for 2% to 10% of patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), the disease will transform into something more complex.
“Of this small group, 95% may develop diffuse large-B cell lymphoma (DLBCL), and the other 5% may develop Hodgkin lymphoma. This is known as ‘Richter transformation’ or ‘Richter’s syndrome,’” The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society explains on its website.
Actor Dwayne Johnson, 52, recently made a surprise appearance at a Target store in Clifton, New Jersey, and among the fans he met was a woman with stage 4 pancreatic cancer.
On Nov. 12, Johnson shared a clip of the interaction to his Instagram account.
The woman told Johnson, “I’m a warrior,” and he replied, “You are a warrior.”
“We gotta keep fighting, fight fight fight,” she said, according to a report from PEOPLE.
“Had to stop and spend a moment to meet this beautiful WARRIOR. 'We gotta keep fighting.' Amen. Stay strong and keep fighting,” Johnson in the caption of his post on Instagram.
Oscar-winning actress Kathy Bates, best known for her work in “Titanic” (1997) and “Misery” (1990) and currently starring in “Matlock” on CBS, received a diagnosis of breast cancer in 2012 at the age of 64. However, after undergoing a double mastectomy (the surgical removal of both breasts), she decided not to undergo reconstruction.
Now, the actress, 76, has explained her personal decision in a new interview.
“At the age I was, I thought, ‘You know, I really don’t wanna go through that,’” Bates told Christina Applegate and Jamie-Lynn Sigler on the Nov. 12 episode of their MeSsy podcast, according to a report from E! News. “I just didn’t wanna go through it. I wasn’t in a relationship, I was older, and I didn’t think that I would be in a relationship. So I was kind of like, ‘Why do I have to?’”
Bates had other practical reasons as well, as she explained.
“The other thing — this is really weird, maybe — but I had really heavy breasts,” she said. “They were, like, 10 pounds when they removed them, and I kind of enjoy not having breasts.”
Bates had previously also been diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2003, according to the report.
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