Rolling Stone's Ronnie Wood survives second cancer battle during lockdown

Ronnie Wood revealed he was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive small-cell cancer and he got the all-clear during the lockdown.

The 73-year old Rolling Stones guitar legend shared in an exclusive interview with The Sun that he secretly battled the disease with his family by his side. He said they gave him the motivation to stay strong and that being sober for a decade (after eight rehab stints) also helped.

"I've had cancer two different ways now. I had lung cancer in 2017 and I had small-cell more recently that I fought in the last lockdown," Wood said.

Small-cell carcinoma typically manifests in the lungs but can have harmful effects on other areas such as the lymph nodes, pancreas, bladder, and prostate. It is highly malignant but responds well to chemotherapy and radiation upon early detection.

As for Wood, he shared that he "came through with the all-clear" with the help of his family. He is dad to twin daughters Gracie and Alice, four, with his wife of eight years Sally. He said his love for painting helped during the lockdown and that he worked on portraits of his family to stay positive.

Likewise, he credited his latest cancer survival to a "higher power," which is said to be a core belief of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and Narcotics Anonymous (NA).

"I'm going through a lot of problems now, but throughout my recovery, you have to let it go. And when you hand the outcome over to your higher power, that is a magic thing," Wood explained as he recited the AA and NA's Serenity Prayer: "Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change. That's incredible. What will be will be, it's nothing to do with me."

"All I can do is stay positive in my attitude, be strong and fight it, and the rest is up to my higher power," he added.

Wood reportedly had part of his lungs removed during his first brush with cancer in 2017. He blamed his diagnosis then on smoking 25 to 30 cigarettes daily for "50-odd years" before he gave up on the habit in 2016. He declared he was lung cancer-free in 2018.