John Lennon’s son, Julian Lennon, reveals he had an emergency operation after discovering a cancerous mole for the second time.
Julian Lennon, 61, the eldest son of the late Beatles icon and his first wife Cynthia Lennon, shared on social media Wednesday that he underwent a seven-hour emergency surgery on his shoulder and forearm to remove a malignant mole, one of which turned out to be Melanoma.
Lennon detailed his diagnosis in a lengthy post on X alongside several black and white “Disturbing images” depicting before and after surgery.
“Before I flew to New York from Los Angeles, for good morning America, Sirius XM, iHeart Radio & My Fotografiska Q&A Book Signing Event, I went to see, as I usually do when in LA, My lovely Dermatologist – Dr Tess, was the one who caught & operated on My Mole/Skin Cancer, a few years ago, and literally saved My Life,” he wrote.
Lennon explained he just finished filming for “Good Morning America,” promoting his debut fine art photography book “Life’s Fragile Moments” and newly remixed single, when he received a urgent message from his dermatologist to return to Los Angeles for surgery.
“So instead of going home to put my Christmas tree up and happily finish the year off, relaxing at home, I flew directly back to Los Angeles, after all my work in New York was done, and went directly from LAX airport to surgery, with a surgeon recommended by Dr Tess,” he continued in the statement.
Lennon said the California-based surgeon, Tim Neavin, “spent several hours cleaning up and operating on me, with large margins, in the hope that we have, at the end of the day – clear margins, which would mean being free from cancer.”
Lennon noted that while the operation was successful, he was not sure if the biopsy results would arrive before Christmas. He thanked his doctors “for being able to coordinate this surgery at such short notice, but for once again, hopefully saving my life.”
“One can never be too confident in circumstances like this, but we all believe that Dr Tim has saved the day… So fingers crossed for now,” he wrote.
Lennon also urged his followers to receive regular checkups from their doctors.
“It only takes a short while to do so, and you may just be saving your own life, at the end of the day,” he wrote. “So please, for the sake of yourself, your family and friends just go to your Dr and do what must be done… I love life and I want to live for a very long time and this is one way, and a choice, that could determine your future.”
In 2020, the singer revealed he had undergone surgery to remove a mole on his head that “looked and felt” different after a biopsy came back positive that it was cancerous.
“I cannot tell you how I felt, from One moment of Joy, to the fear of feeling that I may be gone, at any given moment,” he wrote at the time. “I’m still shaking inside… But My Faith is Strong….”
On Dec. 14, Lennon shared photos with his 49-year-old brother Sean Ono Lennon, son of Yoko Ono and John Lennon, at the Dakota, the New York City apartment building, where Mark David Chapman fatally shot his father on Dec. 8, 1980.
Lennon’s mother Cynthia died in April 2015 following a battle with cancer. She was 75.