It is with great remorse that I feel compelled to speak truthfully to my friends, family and my millions of fans around...

Posted by Bret Hart on Monday, 1 February 2016

Former WWE wrestler Bret "The Hitman" Hart has announced on social media that he is battling prostate cancer. Hart was a mainstay of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE, then known as the World Wrestling Federation) during the 1980s and 1990s, and is a seven-time world champion.

In a defiant post on his Facebook page, Hart said he wanted to "speak truthfully to my friends, family and millions of fans around the world" before mentioning a number of health issues he has faced in recent years.

He then quotes American novelist Mark Helprin, who said: "We are all perfect clocks that Divinity has set to ticking when, even before birth, the heart explodes into a lifelong dance." Hart then goes on to reveal the crushing truth: "With hesitation and fear, I openly declare myself in my fight against prostate cancer."

In the penultimate paragraph, Hart describes how he will fight the disease: "I will wage my fearsome fight against cancer with one shield and one sword carrying my determination and my fury for life, emboldened by all the love that's kept me going this long already."

"Love is my weapon and I've got much of it around me all the time, for which I'm truly blessed and eternally grateful. My children, grandchildren, and my loving wife Steph have been and will constantly be at my side. I refuse to lose, I will never give in or give up, and I will win this battle or die trying."

Hart says that in the next few days he will be ungoing surgery in the hopes of defeating the cancer: "I hope I can take the fight to prostate cancer."

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