Guitarist Chad Gilbert of New Found Glory has been diagnosed with pheochromocytoma — a rare type of tumor that develops in the adrenal glands. A week after his diagnosis, Gilbert underwent successful surgery to remove the tumor.
Gilbert posted a photo of himself post-operation lying in his hospital bed. He wrote, “For the last 14 days I've been living in the hospital having cancer removed. Here's the timeline of my unexpected journey: On December 5th, my wife found me unresponsive in bed. I'd been waking up drenched in sweat the last few days and we thought I was sick. Not being able to wake me, she called 911 and performed CPR and mouth to mouth. Apparently I was doing something called 'agonal breathing' and was minutes from death.”
She continued, “I woke up with 7 paramedics surrounding my bed. I was so confused. My blood sugar somehow dropped to 20 and if my wife hadn't found me, I would've fallen into a coma or died. The paramedics took me to the ER in an ambulance. They couldn't figure out why my blood sugar kept dropping or why my blood pressure kept skyrocketing, even with blood pressure medication in my system. I was hooked up to two different drips I couldn't be separated from.
Gilbert later revealed that on Decemver 6th he found out that his tumor was malignant and that he had to have surgery. He then opened up about surgery, saying, “I was sedated and drugged up and don't remember anything from surgery day. My surgeon came in the next morning and let us know he got it all out!! Now we just needed the pathology report to make sure no cancer got in the lymphnodes.”
After surgery, he wrote, “It's Sunday, December 19th. Yesterday was the first time I got to smell fresh air since December 5th. I'm home with my wife and baby and so thankful to be alive!!”
