Even clowns cry. Ben Stiller revealed Tuesday, October 4, that he was diagnosed with prostate cancer two years ago at the tender age of 48.
The Emmy winner, now 50, opened up about his battle with the disease for the first time during an interview on The Howard Stern Show, explaining that he and his doctor were able to detect and treat the cancer without telling anyone in the press.
“It came out of the blue for me. I had no idea,” Stiller explained to host Howard Stern. “At first, I didn’t know what was gonna happen. I was scared. It just stopped everything in your life because you can’t plan for a movie because you don’t know what’s gonna happen.”
The Zoolander actor then explained why he decided to finally announce the news, saying, “I wanted to talk about it because of the [PSA] test … I feel like the test saved my life.”
Stiller felt an obligation to advance public awareness of early detection and prostate cancer prevention, since the test had spared him from being glib to the attack inside his body early enough to fight it.
A prostate-specific antigen test, or PSA test, is a blood test typically used to screen males for prostate cancer. The test examines and measure the amount of PSA in a patient’s blood; PSA is an antigen produced by cancerous and noncancerous tissue in the prostate.
“It’s the second most deadly cancer, but it’s about one of the most curable,” Stiller explained.
Once diagnosed, he immediately called his close friends as well as fellow actor Robert De Niro, who beat prostate cancer several years ago.
“Afterwards, it just gives you an appreciation for life,” he told Stern. “Every six months I’m taking my PSA test to make sure I’m clear.”
True courage and grace are rare traits to celebrate in modern Hollywood celebrities, but in Stiller’s case, he stood down prostate cancer with a walk off that would’ve made Mugato stare in awe…Derek Zoolander himself couldn’t have blue steeled cancer any better.
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