Richard Simmons is opening up about a past health battle.
One day after he sparked concern over a cryptic post, the American fitness personality detailed his battle with skin cancer.
"There was this strange looking bump under my right eye," he wrote in a March 19 Facebook post. "I had a tube of neosporin which I would put on in the morning and the evening—it was still there. It was time to call my dermatologist."
And after detailing his visit to his doctor, Richard shared he was informed of his skin cancer diagnosis.
"He said, basal cell carcinoma," he continued. "I told him to stop calling me dirty names. He laughed."
Richard—who has mostly retired from the public eye since being an aerobics icon in the late ‘80s—provided a detailed account of the day he received his diagnosis, including receiving what appeared to be a curettage and electrodesiccation procedure, a process which involves removing skin growths.
"There was no numbing it just had to be done with a small instrument," he added. "As he started burning my skin a tear dropped down my cheek. ‘You can't cry during this' and he wiped my tear. The burning really hurt my skin. It lasted about 30 minutes. ‘Come back in an hour and a half and see if I got it all out.'"
But as Richard later explained in a follow-up post, he was able to get the cancerous cells removed and shared gratitude for his doctor.
"I gave him a hug," he wrote. "We are not done yet, I have to stitch your face up. It took about 45 Minutes and I was done. 'I don't want to see you back here again.'"
He added, "I know some of you reading this have had cancer or have known someone in your life who has had cancer. Promise me you will see your doctor and get a complete check up."
The 75-year-old's message came one day after he sparked concern with fans when he mentioned he was "dying" in another Facebook post. He later expanded on what he meant by his original statement.
"I am not dying," he clarified in a March 18 Facebook post. "It was a message about saying how we should embrace every day that we have. Sorry for this confusion."
This story was first published on Wed, Mar 20, 2024, 5:57 AM PT.