Country music star Toby Keith says he hopes to be back on tour this fall as he continues his nearly two-year battle with stomach Cancer, but he knows he is battling an enemy that doesnāt quit.
Keith has undergone surgery, radiation and chemotherapy in his fight against the disease, which he was diagnosed with in 2021, according to the Oklahoman.
āIām feeling pretty good. ⦠Iām about another eight weeks from my last scan. So, I expect next time I look for that tumor to be even less ā and Iāve only got one thatās shown up,ā Keith said in an early June interview.
āBasically, everything is in a real positive trend. You never know with Cancer, so you have to prepare,ā he said.
He said he has to work up to playing a concert.
āBut my goal is, I feel better; Iāve got more wind. And Iām thinking about bringing the band in and setting up, playing two or three days somewhere just to see if I can get through two hours. And if I do, be out on the road this fall.ā
Keith said he is undergoing immunotherapy and consulting a nutritionist because he knows Cancer doesnāt surrender easily.
āThey put oxygen in your blood. They give you high doses of vitamin C and good vitamins and nutrient bag you up to where you feel better. And you can start trying to heal your body,ā he said.
āNow, theyāre trying to fight where the Cancer backs up and says, āOh, youāre fighting that tumor? Weāre gonna remorph and turn into this kind of Cancer.ā ⦠So, while are in the bullpen regrouping, weāre trying to kill āem with something different,ā he said.
Keith says his affection for patriotic music is a part of him.
āI enjoy being that guy. I was at the Super Bowl for the XFL where Bob Stoops won , and a soldier was in the next suite. He came over and heās about to cry. And he said, āI saw you three times: once in Iraq and twice in Afghanistan. ⦠Just hearing your voice gives me goose bumps, hearing that real voice, because you are Captain America to us,'ā Keith said.
āSo yeah, itās great being associated with ⦠people that mean so much to me ā and that I mean so much to them,ā he said.
On his Instagram account, he offered his salute to Old Glory on Flag Day.
āTodayās the day we celebrate the stars and stripesā¦did you know that red, white, and blue were chosen for what they represent? Valor, purity, and justice respectively,ā he wrote.
In December, Keith said his Cancer battle had been rough.
āItās pretty debilitating to have to go through all that, but as long as everything stays hunky-dory, then weāll look at something good in the future,ā he said then, according to Page Six.
But now, he is hoping that day has come, according to the Oklahoman.
āAll I got to do is see if I can get through two or three nights of work and get a little break in this chemo, and weāll go back to work. Iām ready,ā he said.Ā āThatās living.ā
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
