Hall of Famer Dwyane Wade had surgery to remove a cancerous tumor from his right kidney in December 2023, he revealed during his podcast published on Thursday.
Wade, who turned 43 on Jan. 17, made his first public comments on the health issue on “The Why with Dwyane Wade” while speaking with podcast co-host Bob Metelus.
After noticing changes in his urination, which had gotten slower and weaker, Wade went to see a doctor.
“Because I did the full body scan, they were able to see my entire body, my entire insides, and they were able to see something that was on my kidney,” he said.
Wade said doctors saw a possible cyst or tumor and said that surgery would be needed because the area could not be biopsied. He got multiple medical opinions to confirm the diagnosis.
“I had a personal decision to make, and what it was was, ‘If this is cancerous, if this tumor, this cyst is cancerous, on your kidney, you’re 41 years old, you probably need surgery because it’s something that needs to be removed so it doesn’t spread,’ ” Wade said.
Doctors removed 40 percent of his right kidney, he said.
“Thank God that I did the surgery, right, because the tumor was cancerous,” Wade said.
He called it one of the most vulnerable moments in his life.
“I think it was the first time my family, my dad, my kids, they saw me weak,” Wade said. “That moment was probably the weakest point I’ve ever felt in my life. The moments that I was by myself, I was struggling, dog.
“As a man, you never want your family to see you weak. Don’t want to be perceived weak, and you don’t want to be seen in your weak moments, right? But I had to.”
His family’s support throughout was especially important to him.
“In that process of my weakness, I found strength in my family.”
Wade was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2023.
The fifth overall pick in 2003 out of Marquette, the guard played 16 seasons in the NBA, including 14-plus seasons over two stints with the Miami Heat, winning league titles in 2006, 2012 and 2013. He also played for the Chicago Bulls (2016-17) and Cleveland Cavaliers (2017-18).
The 13-time All-Star averaged 22.0 points, 5.4 assists, 4.7 rebounds and 1.5 steals while shooting 48 percent from the field.
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