NBA Hall-of-Famer Dwyane Wade announced on his podcast that he had a cancerous tumor removed from his kidney.

Wade stated that he sought medical attention after feeling pain while urinating, then doctors raised concerns about cancer, and since his kidney couldn’t be biopsied, he opted for surgery. During the operation, which took place in December of 2023, surgeons removed 40% of the tumorous right kidney.

“My own journey to have that surgery, I think it was the first time that my family, my dad, my kids, they saw me weak,” Wade revealed on his podcast, The Why with Dwyane Wade. “ That moment was probably the weakest point I’ve ever felt in my life.”

Wade, 43, played 16 seasons in the NBA and was a part of the historic 2003 draft class, which included himself and several other all-stars such as Chris Bosh, Carmelo Anthony, and Dwyane Wade’s long-time friend, LeBron James.

Wade won the NBA Finals in 2006 over the Dallas Mavericks, before teaming up with LeBron James and Chris Bosh in Miami in 2010, winning two Finals in four years. He would play in Miami for a few years after LeBron left to return to Cleveland, before signing with his hometown Chicago Bulls in the Summer of 2016.

Wade would play one season in Chicago, then was traded to Cleveland to reunite with Lebron, before being traded mid-season in 2018 back to Miami, where he would play the final season of his career in 2019. In all, Wade was a 13-time NBA All-Star, 3-time NBA Champion, and the 2006 NBA Finals MVP.

Following his career, Wade began a series of podcasts and became a part owner of the NBA’s Utah Jazz.

Wade is grateful to be able to be healthy and cancer-free, stating on The Why with Dwyane Wade:

“To find out that at 41 years old, pretty healthy guy, I had cancer—thank God I did do the surgery”.