Jeff Bridges Almost Died: 'Iron Man' Star 'Very Sick' Fighting COVID and Cancer Simultaneously
Jeff Bridges shared the things he is thankful for - including his second life and "The Big Lebowski."
The past months have been fruitful for Bridges, especially since it all happened after surviving cancer and COVID-19 at the same time. As he remains grateful for the things he enjoys now, the actor talked about the near-death experience again while recalling his role in "The Big Lebowski."
In his exclusive interview with Fox News Digital, the "Iron Man" star mentioned his recent partnership with AstraZeneca in pursuit of helping immunocompromised individuals amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to him, his personal experience made him participate in the campaign.
Bridges first disclosed he was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in October 2020. He revealed on Twitter that he felt something unusual in his stomach while working out at home. It turned out that he had a 12-by-9-inch tumor in his body.
US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention explains that Bridges' condition is a type of cancer that attacks a person's lymph system extensively, including the organs that provide, protect, and carries white blood cells in the body.
He underwent chemotherapy from there, but things got worse when he tested positive for COVID-19 after his last treatment.
"Shortly after finding out that good news, I got a letter from the treatment center where I was getting my chemo, and they told me that there was a possibility that I had been exposed to COVID. That meant me being in the hospital for five weeks, very close to, you know, kicking the bucket. I mean, I was very sick," he went on.
Jeff Bridges on Helping Other People
With his near-death experience, Bridges aims to help more people in different ways with his partnership with AstraZeneca.
It is worth noting that he also involved himself in the AztraZeneca's Up The Antibodies campaign. Aside from helping immunocompromised people, the project also promotes long acting monoclonal antibodies to assist people in combating such health dangers.
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Although he already survived the dreaded illnesses, he reportedly still felt scared while preparing for his latest project due to the possibility of catching COVID-19 again.
His doctors then suggested having an EVUSHELD injection which contains long-acting monoclonal antibodies. Bridges then decided to try it to give himself an extra protection and support.
