Def Leppard guitarist Vivian Campbell has revealed that he will receive cancer treatments around the band’s North American summer tour schedule and that he’ll only miss the first two dates of the trek with Styx and Tesla – which opens in Tampa, Florida on Tuesday.
This past week, Campbell - who was first diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma in 2013 - announced that the cancer had returned for the first time since he underwent a stem cell transplant last fall.
Now, the guitarist reports doctors will treat the health issue in such a way that he’ll be able to rejoin the tour this weekend after missing shows in Tampa, FL (June 23) and West Palm Beach, FL (June 25).
“So, so happy to report that I've dodged the bullet of radiation,” says Campbell. “I was due to start a course that would have sidelined me for most of the first leg of the US tour, but my brilliant doctors have steered me towards an alternative course of treatment that will enable me to rejoin the tour this Saturday night in Birmingham Alabama.
“Furthermore, they've tailored future treatments to accommodate the tour schedule so I won't have to miss any more shows.
“I'm so happy and so indebted to the wonderful physicians who have worked so hard on my behalf to make this happen. See you Saturday!”
At press time, Def Leppard had yet to announce plans for shows without Campbell; last fall, the group brought in Steve Brown of Trixter to perform a series of dates in his absence from the lineup.
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