Irish comedian Jon Kenny opens up on cancer return & how he 'put ...
Jon also suffered heart failure while receiving his cancer treatment
IRISH comedian Jon Kenny has opened up about the return of his cancer - and how he chose to "put the blinkers on and keep going".
The Limerick man, best know for his part in Irish comedy duo D'unbelievable's, was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin lymphoma back in 2000.
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The funny man opened up about his first cancer diagnosis happening amidst the success of D'unbelievable's.
Speaking to Oliver Callan on RTE Radio One, he said: "It was tiring an wearing but it was fun and well I nearly killed myself.
"I got cancer at the beginning of 2000 and I had no choice but to take a step back.
"Over the space of two years I was on different forms of treatment."
Jon was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin lymphoma in his early 40s but through extensive chemotherapy treatment he came out the other side.
He added: "I got a stem cell transplant thanks be to god, they sorted me out and I motored on for another while.”
Unfortunately, in 2020, the cancer returned and Jon had to receive an intense operation on his left lung
He said: "My cancer came back then about three or four years ago. I had an operation to remove my left lung and that was grand."
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Trying to find the humour in the harrowing situation, Jon added: "But then the f**ker came back again. I got it back on my lung again."
Jon explained how the chemotherapy was successful, but to throw a spanner in the works he also endured heart failure.
He said: "I’ve been lucky because my chemo is working. But then in the middle of it all just for the craic when I was just getting on with things and I had my second chemo, then I got heart failure."
The 66-year-old expressed a positive outlook on his recent health scares and told how he chose to "put the blinkers on and keep going".
When asked if he was finished receiving chemotherapy treatment, Jon said: "No, I’m on what they call 'maintenance at' the moment. But things seem to be under control.
“I didn’t have it last week, I had a break from it, so it’s not in my system now and I can do my shows”
“I get it every 3 weeks, but if I can start to stretch that to every 4 or 5 weeks, it’ll give me time to feel better and do stuff.”
The Limerick native also opened up about his struggle with dyslexia and how it still challenges him today.
Jon admitted it is "a cursed thing" and confessed that he would still "freeze" if a script was put in front of him.
He said: "It’s psychological damage that was done to me as a young fella, there is no doubt about it and I’ve never got over it.
“I still go back to primary school and the days when we were lined up against the wall and physically given a good beating, because we couldn’t spell. Like I faced that 5 days a week going to school.”
Jon will perform two shows in The Matchmaker in Bray and in Limerick as part of Limerick's Poetry Month in April.
