Jeff Bridges health: Star, 72, on his ‘brush with mortality’ – illness explained

Jeff Bridges teases potential sequel to The Big Lebowski

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The star achieved his first Oscar nomination for 1971 film The Last Picture Show, which sparked one of many nominations. But in 2020, The Big Lebowski actor shocked his fans and colleagues when he announced he had been diagnosed with lymphoma, a type of blood cancer. Aged 70 at the time, the star said the prognosis was “good”, but he was needing treatment. In a statement on Twitter back in October 2020, Bridges said: “I have been diagnosed with lymphoma. Although it is a serious disease, I feel fortunate that I have a great team of doctors and the prognosis is good. I’m starting treatment and will keep you posted on my recovery.”

After undergoing extensive treatment for his cancer, including chemotherapy, things went from bad to worse for the actor, as in 2021 he caught Covid.

At the time the actor believed that he caught the virus while being exposed at the facility where he was receiving chemotherapy treatment.

Announcing in September 2021 that his cancer was “in remission” after the tumour shrunk to the “size of a marble”, Bridges also went on to reveal that whilst still receiving treatment, both him and his wife Susan Geston contracted Covid.

“My wife Sue and I share an ambulance to the ICU. We both got the ’rona’,” he wrote in a blog post on his website.

Due to his already vulnerable condition, Bridges spent five weeks in hospital with the condition whilst his wife only stayed for five days.

“The reason I’m there so long is because my immune system is shot from the chemo,” he added.

“My dance with Covid makes my cancer look like a piece of cake.

“Covid kicked my a** pretty good, but I’m double vaccinated and feeling much better now.

“While I had moments of tremendous pain… getting close to the pearly gates, all in all, I felt happy and joyous most of the time.

“This brush with mortality has brought me a real gift — life is brief and beautiful.

“Love is all around us and available at all times. It’s a matter of opening ourselves to receive the gift.”

The National Cancer Institute explains that lymphoma is a broad term for cancer that begins in cells of the lymph system. The two main types of lymphoma are Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL).

Hodgkin lymphoma can start anywhere in the lymphatic system. It can develop in more than one place in the body at the same time but the most common place for it to be noticed is in the lymph nodes in the neck.

The most common symptom of Hodgkin lymphoma is a painless swelling, but other symptoms that can appear include:

• Heavy sweating, especially at night
• High temperatures that come and go with no obvious cause, often overnight
• Losing a lot of weight over a short period of time, despite eating well
• Itching, which may be worse after drinking alcohol
• Cough or shortness of breath
• Tummy (abdominal) pain or vomiting after drinking alcohol.

Differing slightly, NHL is commonly found in the neck, liver or spleen. But it can also be found in other body organs, such as the stomach, small bowel, bones, brain, testicles or skin. Although very uncommon, it can also affect the eye.

Similarly, NHL will also cause a painless swelling in one certain area of the body, with other possible symptoms including:

• Enlarged tonsils (these are at the back of your throat)
• A lump in your tummy (abdomen) – this could be due to an enlarged liver or spleen or enlarged lymph nodes in the tummy
• Breathlessness (if lymphoma is affecting nodes in your chest).

Treatment often depends on several factors including the number of places in the body affected by lymphoma and the type of lymphoma.

The main types of treatment for both Hodgkin and NHL are:

• Chemotherapy
• Targeted cancer drugs
• Radiotherapy.

For Hodgkin lymphoma, treatment is usually very successful, but for NHL it largely depends on the specific type of cancer an individual has.

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