Eddie Money has been a radio staple since the late 1970s, charting with hits like Baby Hold On, Two Tickets to Paradise, Think I’m in Love, Shakin’, Take Me Home Tonight, I Wanna Go Back, and Walk on Water.
Now, the 70-year-old crooner is battling Stage IV esophageal cancer. (1)
Money will address his diagnosis in an episode Real Money to air at 9:30 p.m. ET Sept. 12 on AXS TV.
Real Money follows the daily lives of Money, his wife, and their five children, both at home and on the road.
Money received the diagnosis last fall while taping the second season of the reality series. The six remaining episodes of Season 2 will deal with Money’s cancer and its effects on him and his family.
In July, Money canceled his summer tour after developing pneumonia while still recovering from recent heart valve surgery. Despite the multiple health issues, Money still plans on returning to the road later this year.
He released Brand New Day on July 19. “This is my first studio album in over 15 years,” Money said. “I’m so happy with the record – I think it’s one of the best albums I’ve ever made.”
The website classicsdujour.com said the album, Money’s 12th studio release, “delivers an autobiography of sorts, with the title track serving as the index to the rest of the album: 11 very personal tracks that can be interpreted as an insight into his rock ‘n’ roll life and a paean to friends now gone.” (2)
The National Cancer Institute reports approximately 0.5 percent of men and women will be diagnosed with esophageal cancer at some point during their lifetime, based on 2014-2016 data. (3)
The number of new cases of esophageal cancer was 4.3 per 100,000 men and women per year. The number of deaths was 4.0 per 100,000 men and women per year. These rates are age-adjusted and based on 2012-2016 cases and deaths.
Based on data from SEER 18 2009-2015, 19.9% of people with esophageal cancer survived 5 years or more.
“I thought I was going in for a checkup,” Money said, a former policeman who left his native Brooklyn for the Berkeley music scene in the 1970s. “He told me I got cancer.”
His wife Laurie noted the cancer is at the top of the singer’s stomach and has spread to his liver.
“When we found out I have cancer, and it was like Stage IV and it was in my liver and my lymph nodes and a little bit in my stomach,” he said, “it was … it hit me really, really hard.
“What I don’t want to do is keep the fact that I have cancer from everybody. I want the people to know cancer has come a long way – and not everybody dies from cancer, like they did in the ‘’50s and ‘’60s.
“Am I going to live a long time, who knows? It’s in God’s hands,” he added. “But you know what, I’ll take every day I can get. Every day above ground is a good day.”
Citations
(1) Eddie Money announces he has cancer. http://www.axs.tv/featured/eddie-money-cancer-realmoney
(2) Hear Eddie Money’s “Brand New Day” from His First New Studio Album in 15 Years. https://classicsdujour.com/hear-eddie-moneys-brand-new-day-from-his-first-new-studio-album-in-15-years
(3) Cancer Stat Facts: Esophageal Cancer. https://seer.cancer.gov/statfacts/html/esoph.html